The mood at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or had there never been any cohesion keeping it intact in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, only for him admitted that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that he could resign were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized during matches as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if progress is being made or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Presence
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed the last one on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, his parent club were attempting to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster without replacements.
He signed originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the exact type of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
