The feeling at their home stadium was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or was there ever any cohesion keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, only for him publicly stated that the club had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to tell if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were advocating for him to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Finding His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to work out the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
