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The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had conceded ten goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.

This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?

Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or had there never been a thread keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, before he admitted that the board had omitted to inform him about a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for accounting issues. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.

The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as off the field, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to ascertain if they're getting better or collapsing.

Matteo's Unexpected Presence

At least one man continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, early this summer, his owning club were attempting to extend his stay a while longer. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to weaken their team with no new signings.

He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."

Discovering His True Position

Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Billed as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn