The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he admitted that the management had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he might quit were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, observers have struggled to ascertain if they're getting better or collapsing.
The Youngster's Unexpected Comeback
At least one man continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster with no new signings.
He joined originally during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
