The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had conceded 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign 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 admitted that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if progress is being made or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his owning club were pushing for him to extend his stay a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He signed initially during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Discovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to identify the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
