The feeling at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had conceded 10 goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign falling apart, or had there never been a binding element keeping it intact from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the club had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were about to receive for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy in their performances as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other initial five matches, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or collapsing.
The Youngster's Surprising Comeback
At least one man remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to stay there for another season. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived originally when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the exact type of the player's talent. Billed as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
