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The mood at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy on Saturday afternoon. The Biancocelesti found themselves behind against Torino, a team that had allowed a total of 10 goals while scoring only two in their previous five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were concluding their latest protest in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito.

This Year's Efforts Coming Unstitched?

Had their campaign falling apart, or was there ever any cohesion keeping it intact to start with? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager during the off-season, only for him to later acknowledge that the management had omitted to inform him about a ban on new signings they were facing for fiscal problems. Speculation that his departure was imminent were not true, but he did say that Lotito had "deceived" him.

The Roman club became as messy during matches as they were off it, defeating Verona 4-0 and Genoa 3-0 but being defeated in the rest of their initial five matches, including the Rome derby. At any given moment, it's been difficult to ascertain if they are improving or imploding.

The Youngster's Unforeseen Return

At least one man kept smiling through it. Matteo Cancellieri was not even supposed to be at Lazio this season. He completed the last one with Parma on loan and, at the start of the off-season, Lazio were advocating for him to remain there a while longer. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. The club couldn't risk to reduce their roster without replacements.

Cancellieri arrived originally during Sarri's previous tenure, then a 20-year-old alumnus of Verona's academy. He made 20 league appearances in Lazio colors in that campaign, all but one of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, who departed following that term, would later accuse Sarri of "informing all Cancellieri had superstar potential only to bench him consistently."

Discovering His True Position

It's possible the coach was still trying to determine the specific characteristics of Cancellieri's abilities. Labeled as a wide forward upon signing, Cancellieri nevertheless spent the majority of that term as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. In 63 appearances during spells with Empoli and Parma in the past two years, he scored seven times. Shoehorn