The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had conceded a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a continuous dispute with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season unraveling, or did there exist a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he to later acknowledge that the club had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Rumours that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.
The Youngster's Unexpected Return
A single player remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He completed the last one on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were attempting to extend his stay temporarily. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential then never playing him."
Finding His True Position
It's possible the coach was persistently working to work out the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a flank player when he joined, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
