The atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, but then he admitted that the club had failed to disclose the transfer ban they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Rumours that he might quit were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if they are improving or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unexpected Presence
A single player remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He was on last season at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to remain there for another season. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined initially when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
