The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever any cohesion keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, only for him to later acknowledge that the board had not mentioned the transfer ban they were facing for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club became as messy in their performances as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their initial five matches, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Presence
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were advocating for him to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team with no new signings.
He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, the vast majority of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to work out the exact type of the player's talent. Billed as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
