The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had conceded a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or was there ever a binding element holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic during matches as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to determine if progress is being made or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Surprising Return
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He was on the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived initially during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was still trying to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
