The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Had their campaign unraveling, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact in the first place? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, but then he admitted that the management had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club became as messy on the pitch as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if they're getting better or imploding.
The Youngster's Surprising Presence
A single player remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He was on the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were attempting to remain there for another season. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived originally during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances for Lazio in that campaign, almost all of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the exact type of his skill set. Labeled as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
