The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a binding element holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, but then he to later acknowledge that the club had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that his departure was imminent were not true, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Presence
At least one man continued to smile amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He completed last season at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were attempting to stay there a while longer. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league with the club in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Discovering His True Position
It's possible the coach was persistently working to identify the nature of his skill set. Originally described as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
