The feeling at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread holding it together from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, but then he publicly stated that the club had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Rumours that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. Throughout this period, observers have struggled to ascertain if progress is being made or imploding.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this season. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team without replacements.
He joined initially when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to identify the nature of his skill set. Originally described as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
