The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in a total of 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion maintaining its structure to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, only for him to later acknowledge that the management had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Reports that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if progress is being made or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this year. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, Lazio were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived initially during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
