The feeling at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had allowed 10 goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, but then he to later acknowledge that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Speculation that he might quit were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club became as messy in their performances as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other initial five matches, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it has been hard to tell if they are improving or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return
At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this season. He spent the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his owning club were advocating for him to remain there for another season. The signing restriction led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived originally under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, later stated Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Finding His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was still trying to work out the exact type of his skill set. Labeled as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
