The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or had there never been a binding element holding it together in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, before he publicly stated that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining initial five matches, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
Matteo's Unforeseen Presence
At least one man kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He was on the last one with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, Lazio were attempting to stay there for another season. The registration embargo forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to weaken their team with no new signings.
He joined initially when Sarri was last in charge, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Uncovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to identify the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
