The feeling at their home stadium was far from happy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or had there never been a thread holding it together to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, before he to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Reports that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized during matches as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing their other first five games, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it has been hard to determine if they are improving or collapsing.
The Youngster's Surprising Return
At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He was on last season on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad without replacements.
He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances with the club in 2022-23, all but one of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player when he joined, 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 during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
