The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or had there never been a binding element keeping it intact from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he to later acknowledge that the board had not mentioned the transfer ban they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they're getting better or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unexpected Comeback
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio this year. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were attempting to extend his stay a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster with no new signings.
He joined in the first place under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
