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The mood at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were finishing their latest protest in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.

The Campaign Unraveling?

Had their campaign falling apart, or did there exist any cohesion maintaining its structure in the first place? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, only for him publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for fiscal problems. Reports that his departure was imminent were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "misled" him.

The Biancocelesti appeared equally disorganized during matches as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it's been difficult to determine if they are improving or collapsing.

Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return

One individual kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He spent the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay temporarily. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to thin their squad lacking backup options.

Cancellieri arrived initially when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."

Finding His Best Role

It's possible the coach was persistently working to determine the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Originally described as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn