🔗 Share this article Matteo Cancellieri Shows Flashing Moments of Brilliance in Silver Lining for Struggling Lazio The feeling at the Stadio Olimpico was far from happy this past Saturday. The home side was losing against Torino, an opponent that had let in ten goals while scoring only two in their most recent five league matches. Supporters from the Curva Nord were finishing their ongoing dissent in an ongoing feud with chairman Claudio Lotito. A Season Unraveling? Had their campaign unraveling, or was there ever any cohesion keeping it intact in the first place? The club brought back Maurizio Sarri as manager in the summer transfer window, only for him admitted that the club had failed to disclose a ban on new signings they were about to receive for accounting issues. Reports that he could resign were not true, 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 their other initial five matches, featuring the derby della Capitale. From one game to the next, it's been difficult to determine if progress is being made or collapsing. Matteo's Surprising Return A single player continued to smile throughout. Matteo Cancellieri wasn't originally meant to feature for Lazio this season. He completed the previous campaign at Parma as a loanee and, during the summer break, his owning club were advocating for him to extend his stay for another season. The transfer ban led to a change of plans. They were unable to weaken their team lacking backup options. He joined in the first place during Sarri's previous tenure, at that time a 20-year-old product of Verona's academy. He accumulated 20 matches in the league in Lazio colors in the 2022-23 season, all but one of those from the bench. The club's longtime sporting director, Igli Tare, whose tenure ended after that campaign, later stated Sarri of "telling everyone Cancellieri was destined for stardom but then not selecting him." Uncovering His True Position Maybe Sarri was persistently working to determine the nature of Cancellieri's abilities. Billed as a wide forward on arrival, Cancellieri nevertheless spent most of that campaign as a struggling deputy to Ciro Immobile in the striker role. Across 63 games while playing for Empoli and Parma during recent campaigns, he scored seven times. Shoehorn