The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or was there ever a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the management had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to determine if they are improving or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this season. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his owning club were pushing for him to extend his stay a while longer. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined initially when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances for Lazio in 2022-23, the vast majority of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
