The feeling at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or had there never been a thread maintaining its structure to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short 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.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Comeback
One individual remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this season. He spent the last one with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were attempting to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. They were unable to weaken their team without replacements.
He signed originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Finding His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Billed as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
