The feeling at their home stadium was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or had there never been a binding element holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, but then he publicly stated that the management had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that he could resign were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their first five games, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if they're getting better or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this season. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his owning club were pushing for him to remain there temporarily. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster with no new signings.
He signed in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Finding His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Billed as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
