The mood at their home stadium was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a side that had allowed ten goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their most recent demonstration in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or did there exist any cohesion maintaining its structure to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, before he publicly stated that the club had not mentioned the transfer ban they were set to be hit with for fiscal problems. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in their other first five games, which included the capital clash. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if they are improving or imploding.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
A single player remained positive throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He was on the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, early this summer, his owning club were attempting to stay there a while longer. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to weaken their team with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived initially when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was still trying to identify the nature of the player's talent. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
