Matteo Cancellieri Displays Brief Sparks of Genius in Silver Lining for Unstable Lazio
The feeling at their home stadium was anything but joyful this past Saturday. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a side that had conceded ten goals while netting just two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were wrapping up their most recent demonstration in an ongoing feud with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?
Was Lazio's season falling apart, or had there never been any cohesion holding it together from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach during the off-season, but then he publicly stated that the board had not mentioned a registration embargo they were facing for fiscal problems. Speculation that his departure was imminent were unfounded, but he stated that Lotito had "deceived" him.
The Roman club were just as chaotic on the pitch as behind the scenes, overcoming Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the remaining initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or self-destructing.
Cancellieri's Surprising Presence
One individual kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this season. He was on last season on loan at Parma and, at the start of the off-season, his parent club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. Lazio could not afford to thin their squad without replacements.
He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, back then just 20 years old graduate of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, almost all of those as a substitute. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Discovering His Best Role
It's possible the coach was persistently working to work out the nature of the player's talent. Billed as an attacking winger when he joined, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as an unconvincing alternative to Ciro Immobile as center forward. In 63 appearances on loan at Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he netted seven goals. Shoehorn
