The feeling at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Had their campaign falling apart, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, before he admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Speculation that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other initial five matches, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they're getting better or collapsing.
The Youngster's Unexpected Presence
A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this season. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, Lazio were advocating for him to remain there for another season. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He signed initially when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was still trying to identify the exact type of his skill set. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
