The mood at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had conceded a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or was there ever a binding element holding it together in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the management had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Rumours that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, observers have struggled to ascertain if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Surprising Presence
One individual continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this year. He spent last season with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were attempting to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster without replacements.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the exact type of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
