The mood at their home stadium was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or was there ever a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, only for him admitted that the club had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Reports that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic on the pitch as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining first five games, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Presence
One individual remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He was on last season at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to stay there for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He joined initially during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances for Lazio in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was still trying to identify the nature of his skill set. Billed as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
