The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, only for him publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it has been hard to ascertain if they're getting better or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Surprising Comeback
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed last season with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was persistently working to work out the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
