The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a binding element maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, only for him publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that he might quit were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio became as messy in their performances as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it's been difficult to tell if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Unexpected Presence
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, Lazio were pushing for him to remain there for another season. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. They were unable to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived originally when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the nature of the player's talent. Labeled as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
