The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Had their campaign falling apart, or did there exist a binding element keeping it intact in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the club had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Speculation that he could resign were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic in their performances as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining initial five matches, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if they are improving or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Return
One individual kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were pushing for him to remain there for another season. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He signed initially under Sarri's first spell, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those as a substitute. Their former 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."
Discovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
