Matteo Cancellieri Demonstrates Flashing Moments of Genius in Positive Aspect for Unstable Lazio
The feeling at their home stadium was decidedly gloomy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, a team that had conceded ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was the team's progress unraveling, or was there ever a binding element keeping it intact to start with? They reappointed Maurizio Sarri to lead the team this summer, but then he to later acknowledge that the management had not mentioned a registration embargo they were set to be hit with for financial irregularities. Rumours that he might quit were unfounded, but he acknowledged that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Biancocelesti were just as chaotic on the pitch as they were off it, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their opening fixtures, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.
Matteo's Unexpected Return
A single player remained positive amid the chaos. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this year. He spent last season at Parma as a loanee and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were attempting to extend his stay for another season. The signing restriction forced a rethink. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster with no new signings.
Cancellieri arrived initially when Sarri was last in charge, at that time a 20-year-old graduate of Verona's academy. He made 20 Serie A appearances for Lazio in that campaign, the vast majority of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed at the end of that season, later stated Sarri of "promising everyone Cancellieri would be a star only to bench him consistently."
Uncovering His True Position
Maybe Sarri was continuing to attempt to determine the nature of his skill set. Originally described as an attacking winger upon signing, Cancellieri yet was deployed for much of that season as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. During 63 outings during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
