The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had let in 10 goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or did there exist any cohesion keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, only for him to later acknowledge that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic in their performances as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return
A single player continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this year. He was on last season on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, Lazio were attempting to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. They were unable to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
