The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had let in a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, only for him to later acknowledge that the club had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio became as messy during matches as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other first five games, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to ascertain if progress is being made or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Presence
A single player remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio this year. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league with the club in 2022-23, all but one of those from the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
Perhaps the manager was still trying to identify the nature 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 at No 9. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
