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The atmosphere at Lazio's home ground was anything but joyful during the weekend fixture. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had allowed ten goals while netting just two in their previous five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.

The Campaign Coming Unstitched?

Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever any cohesion holding it together to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team during the off-season, before he admitted that the board had not mentioned the transfer ban they were about to receive for financial irregularities. Reports that he could resign were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.

The Biancocelesti became as messy during matches as they were off it, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but falling short in their other opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. Throughout this period, it has been hard to tell if they're getting better or imploding.

The Youngster's Unexpected Return

At least one man remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to remain with Lazio during this campaign. He completed last season at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were pushing for him to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban forced a rethink. They were unable to reduce their roster without replacements.

He joined initially during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old product of Verona's academy. He made 20 matches in the league with the club in 2022-23, almost all of those coming off the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who left following that term, subsequently claimed Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom then never playing him."

Finding His Best Role

Perhaps the manager was continuing to attempt to work out the exact type of the player's talent. Billed as a wide forward when he joined, Cancellieri instead found himself much of that season as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn