The feeling at Lazio's home ground was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had conceded a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, but then he admitted that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were facing for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Comeback
At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were attempting to stay there temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad with no new signings.
He signed in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in 2022-23, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was persistently working to determine the nature of his skill set. Billed as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
