The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, but then he to later acknowledge that the board had not mentioned the transfer ban they were facing for accounting issues. Rumours that he could resign were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized in their performances as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to determine if they are improving or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Surprising Return
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this season. He completed 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 transfer ban led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league with the club in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
Maybe Sarri was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of his skill set. Billed as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
