The atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had conceded 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, before he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned the transfer ban they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if they're getting better or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Presence
At least one man continued to smile through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this season. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his owning club were advocating for him to stay there for another season. The transfer ban forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to identify the specific characteristics of his skill set. Labeled as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
