The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or did there exist a thread keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, before he to later acknowledge that the management had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Speculation that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic on the pitch as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining initial five matches, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to ascertain if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return
At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He was on last season with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his parent club were attempting to remain there a while longer. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to work out the nature of his skill set. Labeled as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
