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The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a long-running conflict with club owner Claudio Lotito.

A Season Falling Apart?

Was the team's progress falling apart, or was there ever any cohesion keeping it intact from the beginning? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him to later acknowledge that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Reports that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.

The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to determine if progress is being made or imploding.

Cancellieri's Unexpected Return

A single player remained positive through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He completed the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were attempting to remain there a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster without replacements.

Cancellieri arrived in the first place under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in 2022-23, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."

Uncovering His Best Role

It's possible the coach was continuing to attempt to work out the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri instead found himself the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn