The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Speculation that he could resign were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, observers have struggled to determine if progress is being made or collapsing.
The Youngster's Surprising Return
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this year. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The transfer ban forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived initially when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of his skill set. Originally described as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
