The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had conceded 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a binding element maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, before he admitted that the club had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other first five games, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to determine if they're getting better or imploding.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this year. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were pushing for him to stay there a while longer. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad lacking backup options.
He signed originally during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to identify the exact type of his skill set. Originally described as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
