The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, only for him admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their first five games, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to determine if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unexpected Comeback
A single player remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his owning club were pushing for him to stay there for another season. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league with the club in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the exact type of the player's talent. Originally described as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
