The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been any cohesion keeping it intact from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, but then he admitted that the club had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Speculation that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining initial five matches, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Surprising Presence
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio during this campaign. He was on the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 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 left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Finding His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Billed as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
