The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or had there never been a binding element holding it together to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, only for him admitted that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining initial five matches, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Comeback
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He spent the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his owning club were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, almost all of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His True Position
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
