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The feeling at their home stadium was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had conceded 10 goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.

A Season Coming Unstitched?

Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, but then he publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Rumours that he could resign were without basis, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "misled" him.

Lazio were just as chaotic on the pitch as off the field, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. At any given moment, it has been hard to determine if they are improving or collapsing.

Matteo's Unforeseen Return

At least one man kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to feature for Lazio this year. He completed last season with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, Lazio were attempting to remain there temporarily. The registration embargo led to a change of plans. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad lacking backup options.

He joined originally under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those from the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."

Discovering His Best Role

Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Originally described as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn