The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had conceded 10 goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, before he to later acknowledge that the management had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy in their performances as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it has been hard to tell if progress is being made or collapsing.
The Youngster's Surprising Return
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this year. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were attempting to stay there for another season. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
