The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, but then he admitted that the management had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if progress is being made or collapsing.
Matteo's Surprising Presence
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this year. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster with no new signings.
He joined in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Finding His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to work out the exact type of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
