Cancellieri Demonstrates Glimpses of Exceptional Talent in Bright Spot for Struggling Lazio
The atmosphere at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had allowed ten goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their ongoing dissent in a long-running conflict with chairman Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Falling Apart?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever a thread keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri to lead the team in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the board had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that he might quit were without basis, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.
Lazio were just as chaotic during matches as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in the rest of their initial five matches, which included the capital clash. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or collapsing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Comeback
A single player remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He was on the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his owning club were advocating for him to stay there a while longer. The transfer ban forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to weaken their team lacking backup options.
Cancellieri arrived originally during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, would later accuse Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star then never playing him."
Discovering His Natural Fit
Perhaps the manager was still trying to determine the exact type of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile at No 9. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn
