The mood at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had allowed ten goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Had their campaign unraveling, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him publicly stated that the management had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to determine if progress is being made or imploding.
Matteo's Surprising Return
A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent the last one with Parma on loan and, early this summer, Lazio were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed initially during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the nature of his skill set. Billed as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
