Cancellieri Displays Glimpses of Brilliance in Positive Aspect for Struggling Lazio
The feeling at their home stadium was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had let in ten goals while netting just two in their last five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a continuous dispute with club owner Claudio Lotito.
A Season Unraveling?
Was the team's progress coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager this summer, but then he admitted that the board had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Rumours that he could resign were unfounded, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
Lazio became as messy on the pitch as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or self-destructing.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
One individual kept smiling amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio during this campaign. He spent last season with Parma on loan and, during the summer break, his parent club were attempting to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. 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 graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances with the club in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Discovering His True Position
Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to work out the nature of his skill set. Billed as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
