Matteo Cancellieri Demonstrates Brief Sparks of Brilliance in Positive Aspect for Struggling Lazio
The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The home side was losing against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while managing only two goals in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their latest protest in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Had their campaign coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread holding it together to start with? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach in the summer transfer window, but then he publicly stated that the club had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Rumours that he could resign were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "misled" him.
Lazio became as messy in their performances as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, including the Rome derby. From one game to the next, it has been hard to ascertain if they're getting better or self-destructing.
The Youngster's Unforeseen Return
One individual continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He completed the previous campaign on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were advocating for him to stay there a while longer. The registration embargo necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to reduce their roster with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived initially under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He recorded 20 Serie A appearances with the club in that campaign, all but one of those coming off the bench. Their former sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
Perhaps the manager was persistently working to work out the nature of the player's talent. Originally described as an attacking winger on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile as center forward. During 63 outings on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
