The feeling at their home stadium was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or was there ever a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, before he to later acknowledge that the management had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, observers have struggled to determine if they're getting better or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Return
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this year. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. They were unable to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He signed in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was still trying to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
