Despite a convincing last season, finished on the second step of the Serie A podium, Lazio has not yet found its rhythm, and that expected by the thinking heads of the project, on the transfer market. While the Roman club will have the pleasure of participating in the next edition of the Champions League, several players are still hoped for in Lazio during this summer transfer window. Nevertheless, the links between the two strong men of the formation of the Italian capital, seem to have become more complex and they are still not on the same wavelength. If the tensions are palpable between two of the characters of Italian football, a lull could have settled.
Indeed, the rag is not yet burning between Claudio Lotito and Maurizio Sarri but there are many tensions between the president and the coach of Lazio. Indeed, the dialogue, which had been interrupted for several weeks between the two men, even finally resumed but the subjects on the table and the problems to be solved are so numerous that the Roman supporters are logically worried only a few days before the resumption of the season and especially of the Italian championship. Moreover, a summit meeting took place between the leaders and the Italian tactician in order to better prepare for the future to better understand this last final sprint before the return of the various national and European competitions.
Tensions over recruitment
Although the summit in Formello, where Lazio’s training center is located, which started around 10 p.m. on Tuesday evening between the two main protagonists of the Biancocelesti, Maurizio Sarri and Claudio Lotito, did not improve fundamentally and in depth the relationship between the two men, which has withered since the beginning of the summer, it was nevertheless very important to validate the direction that the recruitment of the Roman club must now take. At the end of this meeting, the Laziale leaders confirmed the need to continue to be active this summer to recruit a full-back, two midfielders, including a regista à la Pirlo, and an attacking midfielder, as quickly as possible, in order to remain competitive.
This was the main disagreement between the two men. And it is not for nothing that Angelo Fabiani, the head of the youth sector of the Roman club, but who, after the departure of Igli Tare, is in fact the new sporting director, was also present at this summit. Claudio Lotito wants to be the only master on board to choose the future players of Lazio while Maurizio Sarri also wants to have his say. Despite these differences, a compromise was found. Some names from the Italian coach’s list will be put at the top of the list to show the will to build the project around him. But if the promises are not kept, watch out for the backlash…
Several avenues already under study
Since the start of the transfer window, Maurizio Sarri has insisted in particular on recruiting Samuele Ricci, even if his name was not among the first to arise after the end of the season. The Torino midfield nugget, who impressed the Tuscan coach when he saw him play for Squadra Azzurra’s U21 side, is actually the only midfield profile on the list of the former Neapolitan tactician and it is for this reason that Claudio Lotito will try a new assault in the next few days to bring him to Lazio, after the first previous attempts in recent weeks have all been rejected. The former Napoli manager even refused Arsen Zakharyan to push for Ricci, but the president of Torino Urbano Cairo is tough on business and Ivan Juric has already vetoed his departure.
For the side position, Luca Pellegrini is still in the game, even if Nice and especially AC Milan have been working with Juventus for several days now. Finally, in attack, Maurizio Sarri would have liked Arkadiusz Milik or Giovanni Simeone but it seems that this is not feasible while the recruitment of Valentín Castellanos is a lead that has gained importance. The fact remains that this summer transfer window is the most problematic since the arrival of the Tuscan coach in Rome despite one of the best seasons for the club in the Italian capital for several years now. And we feel that, even if the decision to sever its relationship with its president is not yet on the agenda, it could surely be the last if no change of direction is made in the management of the club over the next few weeks.
