The mood at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had let in ten goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, before he publicly stated that the management had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
At least one man remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to extend his stay a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined in the first place under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
