The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or had there never been any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, only for him admitted that the management had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Reports that he might quit were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining first five games, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Presence
At least one man continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to be at Lazio during this campaign. He completed the last one on loan at Parma and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there a while longer. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He joined initially during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the nature of the player's talent. Labeled as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
