Cancellieri Displays Brief Sparks of Brilliance in Positive Aspect for Struggling Lazio
The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy during the weekend fixture. Lazio were trailing against Torino, a team that had allowed 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 a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
The Campaign Unraveling?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or did there exist a thread maintaining its structure to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, only for him admitted that the board had failed to disclose a registration embargo they were facing for accounting issues. Rumours that he might quit were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their opening fixtures, which included the capital clash. Throughout this period, it has been hard to determine if they are improving or imploding.
Cancellieri's Surprising Presence
At least one man continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He was on the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to stay there a while longer. The registration embargo forced a rethink. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 league appearances with the club in 2022-23, the vast majority of those as a substitute. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, who left at the end of that season, subsequently claimed Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri would be a star but then not selecting him."
Uncovering His Natural Fit
Maybe Sarri was persistently working to identify the nature of his skill set. Billed as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, he scored seven times. Shoehorn