The feeling at their home stadium was far from happy this past Saturday. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Coming Unstitched?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever any cohesion maintaining its structure to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Speculation that he might quit were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining first five games, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or collapsing.
Matteo's Unforeseen Return
One individual kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio this season. He was on last season with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his parent club were pushing for him to remain there a while longer. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to work out the exact type of his skill set. Originally described as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
