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The atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico was decidedly gloomy on Saturday afternoon. Lazio were trailing against Torino, an opponent 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 finishing their latest protest in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.

The Campaign Coming Unstitched?

Had their campaign unraveling, or did there exist a binding element maintaining its structure to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him publicly stated that the management had not mentioned a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Reports that he might quit were not true, but he stated that Lotito had "swindled" him.

Lazio appeared equally disorganized during matches as behind the scenes, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the rest of their first five games, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.

Cancellieri's Unforeseen Return

A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He was on the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, Lazio were pushing for him to stay there for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. They were unable to thin their squad without replacements.

He signed in the first place under Sarri's first spell, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, almost all of those coming off the bench. The ex- sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."

Finding His True Position

It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the nature of his skill set. Originally described as a flank player upon signing, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn