The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had let in a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a binding element maintaining its structure to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, but then he publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were facing for accounting issues. Reports that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to determine if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
One individual remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this season. He was on the last one on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, his owning club were attempting to remain there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league with the club in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
