The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had conceded 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress falling apart, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other first five games, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, it has been hard to determine if they are improving or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Surprising Presence
At least one man kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He spent last season on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Finding His True Position
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
