The feeling at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign falling apart, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, before he admitted that the management had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic during matches as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Presence
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He was on the last one on loan at Parma and, early this summer, Lazio were advocating for him to remain there for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster with no new signings.
He joined originally during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those from the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was persistently working to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
