The feeling at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, only for him publicly stated that the club had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio became as messy during matches as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if they're getting better or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unexpected Presence
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were pushing for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in 2022-23, the vast majority of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to identify the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
