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The mood at their home stadium was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had conceded a total of 10 goals while managing only two goals in their most recent five league matches. Ultras from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with chairman Claudio Lotito.

The Campaign Coming Unstitched?

Was Lazio's season falling apart, or did there exist any cohesion keeping it intact from the beginning? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, before he to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for financial irregularities. Rumours that his departure was imminent were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.

Lazio became as messy in their performances as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the remaining opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it has been hard to ascertain if progress is being made or collapsing.

Matteo's Unexpected Presence

One individual continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this year. He completed the last one at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were pushing for him to remain there a while longer. The signing restriction necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to reduce their roster without replacements.

He signed originally when Sarri was last in charge, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, the vast majority of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."

Discovering His True Position

It's possible the coach was still trying to work out the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn