The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or did there exist any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, but then he to later acknowledge that the board had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were about to receive for accounting issues. Rumours that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic during matches as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or collapsing.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
At least one man kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were pushing for him to extend his stay for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Finding His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was still trying to work out the nature of his skill set. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
