The mood at their home stadium was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Had their campaign unraveling, or was there ever a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, only for him admitted that the club had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating 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, observers have struggled to ascertain if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Comeback
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He was on the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, Lazio were attempting to extend his stay temporarily. The registration embargo forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He joined originally during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 matches in the league with the club in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Finding His True Position
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
