The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion keeping it intact in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him to later acknowledge that the board had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
One individual kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his parent club were advocating for him to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was persistently working to identify the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
