The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or was there ever a binding element keeping it intact from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, only for him admitted that the management had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized during matches as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining initial five matches, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
One individual continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio during this campaign. He was on the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, almost all of those as a substitute. The club's longtime 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 Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was persistently working to determine the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player on arrival, 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
