The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or did there exist any cohesion holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, only for him to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about the transfer ban they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that he might quit were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their first five games, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if progress is being made or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Presence
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He was on the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there for another season. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad with no new signings.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in 2022-23, all but one of those as a substitute. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to identify the exact type of the player's talent. Billed as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
