The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or did there exist any cohesion keeping it intact from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were facing for accounting issues. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic on the pitch as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, Lazio were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team with no new signings.
He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in 2022-23, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Finding His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to identify the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Billed as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
