The feeling at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he to later acknowledge that the management had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic in their performances as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining first five games, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it has been hard to ascertain if they are improving or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were advocating for him to stay there temporarily. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived initially when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
It's possible the coach was persistently working to work out the exact type of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
