The mood at their home stadium was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the board had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining initial five matches, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it's been difficult to tell if they are improving or collapsing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed last season on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined originally during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of the player's talent. Billed as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
