The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or had there never been a thread holding it together to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were about to receive for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Surprising Comeback
One individual remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this year. He was on the last one at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his owning club were attempting to extend his stay a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was still trying to work out the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
