The mood at Lazio's home ground was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed 10 goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Had their campaign falling apart, or did there exist a binding element keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, before he admitted that the management had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were facing for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio became as messy during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to determine if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
At least one man remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were attempting to extend his stay for another season. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived originally under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to identify the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
