The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had conceded a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Falling Apart?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or had there never been a binding element maintaining its structure from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, before he admitted that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for financial irregularities. Reports that he might quit were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club appeared equally disorganized in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Presence
One individual remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio this season. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay a while longer. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team without replacements.
Cancellieri arrived originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances with the club in that campaign, almost all of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings while playing for Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
