The mood at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign unraveling, or was there ever a thread maintaining its structure from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, but then he admitted that the board had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club became as messy during matches as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their initial five matches, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Return
A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He completed last season with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were pushing for him to remain there a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was still trying to determine the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn