The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with club owner Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign falling apart, or had there never been any cohesion keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, but then he admitted that the club had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their first five games, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
A single player kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to stay there a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived originally when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Finding His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
