Matteo Cancellieri Demonstrates Brief Sparks of Exceptional Talent in Silver Lining for Struggling Lazio
The feeling at Lazio's home ground was decidedly gloomy during the weekend fixture. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, an opponent that had let in 10 goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Fans from the Curva Nord were concluding their most recent demonstration in a long-running conflict with president Claudio Lotito.
This Year's Efforts Unraveling?
Was Lazio's season coming unstitched, or was there ever a thread holding it together from the beginning? Lazio reinstated Maurizio Sarri as head coach this summer, before he publicly stated that the board had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were about to receive for fiscal problems. Speculation that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "swindled" him.
The Roman club became as messy during matches as off the field, beating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but losing the remaining first five games, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, observers have struggled to tell if they're getting better or collapsing.
Cancellieri's Unexpected Comeback
At least one man kept smiling throughout. Matteo Cancellieri had not been expected to be at Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign with Parma on loan and, early this summer, his parent club were pushing for him to remain there temporarily. The transfer ban necessitated a reconsideration. They were unable to reduce their roster lacking backup options.
He joined initially under Sarri's first spell, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 Serie A appearances in Lazio colors 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 "informing all Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him."
Finding His Natural Fit
It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the specific characteristics of the player's talent. Labeled as a flank player on arrival, Cancellieri yet was deployed for the majority of that term as an ineffective backup to Ciro Immobile as center forward. Across 63 games during spells with Empoli and Parma over the last two seasons, his tally was seven goals. Shoehorn
