The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had conceded ten goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or did there exist a binding element keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, only for him to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic on the pitch as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their first five games, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it has been hard to tell if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this season. He was on the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were pushing for him to extend his stay temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was still trying to identify the nature of his skill set. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
