La Gazzetta dello Sport 

Vlahovic Diavolo 

We’re into the last month of the window and Dusan scores a goal for Allegri 

The Serbian comes on and scores in Juve’s friendly, but it’s too much in Bianconero 

Milan prepare the attack on the bomber and advance for full-back Athekame 

Hjulmand yes to Juve 

Miretti sees Napoli 

Lookman 

Because it’s Inter (and Chivu wants him at all costs) 

Scamacca 

Returns and scores one year later and makes everyone happy 

Corriere dello Sport 

Him again 

Juve blushes 

Vlahovis scores, David and Joao Mario debuts in grey 

The team is pegged back, even though Conceicao levelled, it finishes 202. Bremer finally on the pitch. Comollli at work for Kolo and Hjulmand 

The Raspa gold 

If he leaves, Napoli go for a double blow 

He’s on the Atletico Madrid list: DeLa values him at 30 million. Manna could buy a winger and Gutierrez. Brest today

Lookman, Inter ready for the relaunch 

Atalanta haven’t budged on the price: Marotta waiting 

A dynamic Roma: Gasp beats Lens as well 

Fifth victory through Mancini and Soule (0-2). Massara studies the plan for Nene

Lazio and Gala: Sarri can smile 

An own goal and Zaccagni: 2-2 draw in Turkey in front of Osimhen 

Tuttosport 

Juve, in the meantime, Bremer is there 

Squad packed: 2-2 against Reggiana, but the Brazilian is like a new signing 

304 days on from the bad injury to his knee, Gleison returns as a leader and comforts Tudor and his defence: ‘With a bit of patience, we’ll see him back to his best levels’

Simeons and Idzes: Toro attack 

There’s an agreement with Cholito, working on it with Napoli. Sanabria now to Cremonese. Cairo awaits two players from Venezia with the Coco money

Lazio suffered another setback in pre-season training, as defender Patric has been diagnosed with a new muscular injury ahead of the friendly with Fenerbahce.

Maurizio Sarri’s men are due to face Jose Mourinho’s Turkish team in a friendly test on Wednesday evening.

However, they are weakened by fitness worries, as Gustav Isaksen is ill, Samuel Gigot has lumbago, and Patric suffered a serious muscular problem.

Patric had bad luck with injuries

A statement confirmed that the centre-back was diagnosed with a mid-level lesion to the rectus femoris in his left leg.

This is quite a serious setback for him, especially coming so soon after he had surgery to correct a recurring ankle problem in March.

“It hurts, it really damn hurts,” wrote the defender on Instagram.

“I will not give up and I promise you that I will return stronger than ever. Thank you for the support. Forza Lazio.”

Lazio squad for Fenerbahce friendly:

Furlanetto, Mandas, Provedel, Renzetti; Gila, Hysaj, Lazzari, Marusic, Nuno Tavares, Pellegrini, Provstgaard, Romagnoli, Ruggeri; Basic, Belahyane, Cataldi, Dele-Bashiru, Guendouzi, Pinelli, Rovella, Vecino; Cancellieri, Castellanos, Dia, Noslin, Pedro, Sana Fernandes, Zaccagni

The Lega Serie A published the rule changes for the 2025-26 season for deciding what happens when matches are interrupted or postponed, aiming to play within 24 hours.

There were several situations last term where the games were delayed due to weather warnings or events, which saw the fixture list thrown into chaos with the difficulty of rearranging them.

Now the clubs have come together and approved a new set of rules to make the situation easier, or at the very least provide a little more clarity when they do occur.

Serie A rules for postponed fixtures

The Lega Serie A warns that games that were postponed before kick-off must start within the next 24 hours, unless there are exceptional circumstances such as the pitch still being unsuited to a football match, coinciding with the break for international duty, or games that are too close together.

In these cases, the Lega Serie A will dictate the rescheduling at the earliest available opportunity.

There must be at least two free days guaranteed between fixtures for both the teams involved.

When it comes to games that have been interrupted, the same Serie A rule applies as last season, namely that they pick up precisely where they left off.

If a match was stopped after 80 minutes, for example, then the teams will come back out to play the remaining 10 minutes plus stoppages.

Here too, the aim is to resume the day after it was interrupted.

There are some changes in the rules, as clubs can bring in up to three new players who were signed after the interruption, as long as they did not cross over from the other team involved in the match.

However, those who were sent off, substituted, or suspended for the original game cannot be brought back in.

Napoli are not tearing their hair out over their failure to close a deal with Bologna for Dan Ndoye, who has agreed a deal to become a new Nottingham Forest player on Monday, as they still have alternative options in England, Germany and in Serie A. 

Ndoye is set to join Nottingham Forest in a deal worth up to €49m according to various reports on Tuesday. 

The Partenopei had also been interested in signing the Switzerland international from Bologna, but had previously made it clear that their offers would not exceed the €40m mark with bonuses included, despite the fact that they had been offered the chance to sign Ndoye for €45m. 

Now, Napoli are left evaluating their situation, but there is currently no rush to spring into action after missing out on Ndoye. 

Where Napoli stand after missing out on Ndoye 

As things stand, there has been no evidence of an increased offer of €35m plus bonuses for RB Leipzig’s Antonio Nusa, despite some of the rumours seen online. 

As Football Italia reported last week, there has been direct contact with Chelsea for former England international Raheem Sterling. 

There is also one option in Serie A that Napoli particularly like, which is Lazio’s Mattia Zaccagni. With Lazio’s transfer window in a bit of a deadlock, though, it is not expected to be an easy deal to make for the Partenopei.

Despite a narrow 1-0 win against Avellino, Lazio coach Maurizio Sarri was reportedly displeased with the performance of several players, frequently voicing his dissatisfaction from the sidelines.

Sarri specifically rebuked five players during the match, including veterans Pedro and Matias Vecino; the manager’s frustration extended into the second half, emphasizing his demanding standards for the squad.

FULL STORY VIA THELAZIALI.COM

Lazio secured a narrow victory over Avellino in their second Pre-Season Friendly with a late penalty from Matteo Guendouzi, despite a largely uninspired performance.

The first half saw Lazio struggle to convert chances from Mattia Zaccagni and Matias Vecino, with a Taty Castellanos header disallowed. Maurizio Sarri made eight substitutions at halftime, completely revamping the squad, with the remaining original players eventually subbed off in the 62nd minute.

The second half continued with missed opportunities for Lazio and a crucial double save from Ivan Provedel to deny Avellino. The deadlock was finally broken in the 90th minute when Tijjani Noslin earned a penalty, which Guendouzi calmly converted for the win.

FULL STORY VIA THELAZIALI.COM

President Claudio Lotito continues to insist Lazio ‘have no need’ to raise funds despite their transfer embargo, reports he’d sell the club are ‘totally unfounded,’ and hit out at other teams with debt.

The Aquile failed three different financial stress tests in March, meaning they are under the unusual situation of not being allowed to bring in any new players over the summer, not even free agents or loans.

Lotito has responded by criticising the rules rather than trying to bolster the coffers with fresh funds, which he insists are unnecessary.

At a press conference to present returning coach Maurizio Sarri this evening, the patron took the opportunity to defend himself against criticism from fans.

Lotito hits out at Lazio critics

“It is down to a practical matter, at the time the liquidity index was introduced to ensure clubs wouldn’t go bankrupt during the course of a season,” said Lotito.

“The transfer embargo was imposed due to an oversight, because all we had to do was move €3.6m costs from March to April and it would’ve been fine.

“How many clubs have bonds that allow them to carry on? Or have hundreds of millions in debt? Yet their liquidity index is fine.”

The costs were tied to improvements for the Formello training ground, where Lazio are also having their pre-season camp rather than going elsewhere.

“Lazio are working to improve the infrastructure. If we had wanted to correct the economic aspect, we would’ve sold players, but we received big offers and decided not to sell, because we have no need to do so.

“We sold Loum Tchaouna for €15m. Lazio do not need to sell anyone else. Those players who are not suited to the project will be sold and replaced with others who are stronger and more functional in January.”

With that in mind, Lotito has also rejected the idea that he was ready to sell the club after more than 20 years.

“Totally false. These are totally unfounded stories. There has never been an offer, just the fantasy of someone who wants to create problems for the club and for me. I will not let anyone cause problems for this club.

“Nobody has ever turned up with an offer and I don’t think anyone will. I have no intention of alienating Lazio.”

Maurizio Sarri admits he felt ‘cheated’ by President Claudio Lotito after finding out about the transfer embargo, but would not go back on his ‘promise’ to return to Lazio. ‘I was angry for an hour.’

The coach had left in March 2024 when dealing with family problems and took time out, but was ready for a comeback and decided to pick up where he left off at the Stadio Olimpico.

It was only after signing the contract that he realised the club had failed three financial stress tests, so would not be allowed to sign any new players this summer, not even free agents.

What did he think when first told of the news?

“I thought the President had cheated me,” said Sarri with a wink and a laugh in today’s press conference, which was also attended by Lotito.

“I had already made the decision to return, so leaving due to these difficulties seemed unfair on the club and its fans. I was angry for an hour, then had to put it all to one side. I had made a choice, I read somewhere that I came back to Lazio because I had no other alternatives, but the truth is I negotiated with four Italian clubs, plus teams in Saudi Arabia and South America.

“It was a prolific summer when it came to talks, but I chose Lazio for my rapport with the environment, including the kit staff.”

Lazio facing fresh difficulties with Sarri

Sarri is determined not to use the transfer embargo as an excuse to aim low, especially because he has more time than ever to train his men now that they have failed to qualify for any UEFA tournaments.

“I told the lads from the first day, either they use alibis, or they can use these problems as extra motivation. We must make improvements, Lazio finished in seventh place for two years in a row and we cannot improve on the market, so we must fight every day to improve the individuals we have here.”

There were marches in the street to protest against President Lotito’s tenure, yet figures released today confirm season ticket sales for Lazio have gone up.

“I said that the Lazio spirit invades you and this is the proof once again. The fans get angry, but then they are still there. This is one of the reasons why I came back here,” added Sarri.

Looking back at his decision, would the coach have accepted a return to Lazio if he had known they were not able to sign any new players?

“Life is made of choices, you can never know what effects other decisions would have. In that sense, I try to never look back or ponder on what I didn’t do. At that point, my only choice was whether to stay or not, and I felt it was right to remain so we could all face these difficulties together.”

At the same time, Sarri warns that he cannot promise any great ambitions for this Lazio team.

“My only responsibility is to give my all for these people. I cannot guarantee results, nor buy players worth €100m. I can only guarantee my professionalism and put my soul into this. We need the fans on side too, they can criticise all week if they want to, but we need them 100 per cent behind us during the games.”

The new Serie A season is almost upon us and there have been numerous changes throughout the league, with fresh coaches and players shaking up the Scudetto race.

The Italian league has become probably the most unpredictable in Europe over the last decade, with four different clubs winning in six years, none of them managing to defend their title successfully.

While it’s not exactly a game of chance of the kind you’d get in a no limit casino, it is still bound to be a very tough task to predict a winner when so much is in flux.

Serie A race more unpredictable than ever

Perhaps the only side consistently at or near the top spot in all that time was Inter, and they are under new management of relatively inexperienced Cristian Chivu, having ended the last season empty-handed.

Napoli are providing some rare consistency with Antonio Conte and keeping all their best players for once, along with strong reinforcements like Kevin De Bruyne, Sam Beukema, Noa Lang and Lorenzo Lucca.

However, they are also forced to compete in the Champions League and Supercoppa Italiana too, so Conte is going to have to rotate the squad a lot more than he has ever wanted to.

Spreading himself thin was never his strong point as a coach, tending to do well when able to focus on just one competition at a time.

Milan brought back Max Allegri after his Juventus experiences, while Roma provide an opportunity for Gian Piero Gasperini to either flourish or confirm that Atalanta punching above their weight really was his level.

It is precisely the absence of European competition that could give Milan the biggest advantage in the Scudetto race, giving Allegri all week to prepare his team and focus only on picking up Serie A points.

Grinding out results was always his greatest strength, and something the Rossoneri were lacking in recent years.

The biggest question marks are around Juventus, who have totally revamped their strategy after sacking Thiago Motta just a few months into his debut season, then deciding Igor Tudor would keep the job after a temporary caretaker position.

So much of their transfer planning is still up in the air, especially the Dusan Vlahovic situation, so the strength of the team is awfully difficult to predict at this stage.

Lazio might be ones to watch with Maurizio Sarri’s return and the fact they are not in Europe, giving them time to get his very specifical tactical imprint on the team, but without doubt the transfer embargo is a huge blow to ambition.

Udinese goalkeeper Maduka Okoye has received a two-month ban for illegal betting, but avoided the far worse four-year suspension if he had been found guilty of sporting fraud.

This is significantly less than the feared result of the trial, in which he could’ve faced up to a four-year ban for sporting fraud.

Okoye controversy started in March 2024

The situation erupted during the Serie A match between Udinese and Lazio on March 11, 2024, when he was booked for time-wasting with his team leading 2-1 at the 64^th minute.

A rush of suspicious betting activity around the goalkeeper receiving a yellow card was flagged to the authorities, who launched an investigation.

They found that most of those bets, which at 8/1 odds allegedly generated over €120,000 in winnings, were based around the provinces of Udine.

Okoye was investigated along with three friends and he was deferred to the disciplinary commission in June 2025.

It was feared he could be banned for four years if found guilty of sporting fraud, but the authorities opted to only convict for the lesser charge of illegal betting.

The two-month ban will start from the opening competitive match of the 2025-26 season, which is the Coppa Italia game against Carrarese on August 18.

He will therefore miss six Serie A rounds and be available again from October 19.

The 25-year-old Nigeria international has 18 caps for his country and moved to Udinese from Watford in 2023.

Former Lazio star and ex-England international Paul Gascoigne is said to be recovering after being rushed to hospital and being admitted to intensive care over the weekend, according to reports in the UK. 

Gascoigne recovering in hospital

As per The Sun, Gascoigne, now 58, was found semi-conscious by his friend, driver and personal assistant Steve Foster at his home in Dorset on Friday evening. 

Gascoigne was reportedly admitted to intensive care, but has since been moved to an acute medical unit, where his condition has been described as stable. 

The former Newcastle, Tottenham, Lazio and Rangers favourite is expected to remain in hospital over the next few days to recover and receive further treatment. 

“Paul is in hospital, which is the best possible place for him to be right now,” said Foster, a close friend and colleague. 

He added that Gazza would: “like to thank everyone for the support he’s received so far from so many old friends who wish him well and want to see him back to his best.”

Lorenzo Lucca to Napoli and Pietro Terracciano to Milan are just two of the Serie A transfers completed today, Friday, July 18, 2025. Take a look at all the deals completed today.

Which transfers were announced in Serie A on July 18 2025?

Football Italia takes a look at every confirmed transfer in Italy’s top flight today.

Lucca from Udinese to Napoli

The most significant move confirmed on Friday was Lucca to Napoli, on an initial loan deal with an option to buy. Football Italia reported earlier this week that Lucca’s move to the Stadio Maradona was worth €35m.

The Italian striker will soon be joined by Sam Beukema, who underwent medical tests with the defending Serie A champions on Friday.

Napoli are expected to confirm his signing, the fifth one for them this summer, tomorrow.

Milan have changed their second-choice keeper by sending Marco Sportiello to Atalanta and replacing him with Pietro Terracciano of Fiorentina.

Serie A transfers confirmed on July 18, 2025

Maxi Perrone has remained at Como on a permanent deal from Manchester City, while Valentin Carboni joined Genoa from Inter on a dry loan deal.

• Transfer news LIVE – Milan move forward for Estupiñán, Lucca to Napoli official

Below are all the Serie A transfers confirmed on July 18, 2025.

Giuseppe D’Agostino from Napoli to Giugliano, permanent transfer

Denis Cazzadori from Verona to Union Brescia, loan

Marco Sportiello from Milan to Atalanta, free transfer

Valentin Carboni from Inter to Genoa, loan

Pietro Terracciano from Fiorentina to Milan, free transfer

Lorenzo Lucca from Udinese to Napoli, loan with option to buy

Davide Mastrantonio from Roma to Latina, permanent transfer

Maxi Perrone from Manchester City to Como, permanent transfer

Valentin Mihaila from Parma to Rizespor. permanent transfer

Lorenzo Lucchesi from Fiorentina to Monza, loan

With Mateo Retegui ready to complete his €68m move from Atalanta to Al-Qadsiah, we look at his place in the top 10 most expensive ever Italy international transfers.

The centre-forward was Capocannoniere in Serie A last season, having been a late addition to the squad for €21m from Genoa after Gianluca Scamacca’s serious knee injury in August 2024.

Now his value has more than tripled for the move to the Saudi Pro League, and at €68m Retegui’s deal becomes the biggest ever transfer fee paid for an Italy international.

He is expected to earn a salary worth an eye-watering €20m per season for the next four years.

Retegui beats Tonali record as costliest ever Italy player

This allows Retegui to beat the previous record, which was set by Sandro Tonali when moving from Milan to Newcastle United for €59m in the summer of 2023.

Another sale to the Premier League was Jorginho for €57m in 2018, when he followed Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri to Chelsea.

The fourth most expensive Italy player was also the costliest to move within the confines of Serie A, as Gianluigi Buffon went from Parma to Juventus for what would be €53m in today’s money back in 2001.

Christian Vieri was at the time of his 1999 transfer from Lazio to Inter the most expensive player in the world, even though the fee was worth currently €46.5m.

Back to the Premier League again, as Arsenal paid €45m to get Riccardo Calafiori from Bologna last summer, making him the sixth costliest Italian in transfer history.

Marco Verratti was a very unusual case, as he never played in Serie A before the move to Paris Saint-Germain in 2012.

However, it was the other transfer, from PSG to Al-Arabi in 2023 for €45m, that puts him seventh in this particular top 10.

Federico Chiesa’s fall from grace is evident after realising Juventus coughed up €44.5m to get him from Fiorentina in 2020.

That was nowhere near as much of a disappointing experience as the one Leonardo Bonucci had when moving from Juventus to Milan in 2017 for €42m, only to return to Turin a year later.

Federico Bernardeschi is the only current Serie A player in the top 10 of most expensive Italians, returning for Bologna as a free agent from Toronto FC.

He is in the list thanks to his €40m move from Fiorentina to Juventus in 2017.

Maurizio Sarri returned to work this evening and oversaw the Lazio training session, just hours after he was hospitalised.

There was concern on Wednesday morning when the coach was taken ill and admitted to the Villa Mafalda clinic in Rome.

Lazio released a statement assuring that he was fine and was undergoing a series of tests.

Sarri back at work this evening

He was given the all-clear and was present at the Formello training ground this evening to oversee the session.

Sarri also met with fans and signed autographs, thanking them for welcoming him back to work, as shown by a video on the official Lazio social media channels.

#AvantiLazio pic.twitter.com/X3DYUxvvc9

— S.S.Lazio (@OfficialSSLazio) July 17, 2025

The former Napoli, Chelsea and Juventus tactician is 66 years old and a notoriously heavy smoker, which caused him to be hospitalised before when undergoing treatment for pneumonia in 2019.

As for the squad, Mattia Zaccagni, Patric and Elseid Hysaj are not fully fit and didn’t take part in the full training session.

Lazio will have their first pre-season friendly against the youth team on Sunday evening.

Lazio have confirmed that head coach Maurizio Sarri is okay and that he is on his way back to the club’s training ground to lead the team’s training session scheduled for this evening, despite being hospitalised with an unconfirmed illness earlier on Wednesday. 

Reports from various outlets including La Repubblica claimed that Sarri was taken ill with an unspecified illness on Wednesday morning, and that he was admitted to the nearby Villa Mafalda clinic in Rome. 

• Read more: Sarri taken ill and admitted to hospital 

Lazio confirm Sarri is okay and will lead training on Wednesday

Lazio have since confirmed that Sarri has left the hospital, that he is on his way back to Formello and that he will lead training at 17.00 on Wednesday evening (18.00 local time). 

“Coach Sarri is returning to Formello, and will lead the training session at 18.00 as usual and as scheduled,” a statement read. 

“This morning, he underwent a thorough fitness check, one that was more comprehensive than the tests conducted on the players at the training centre,” the slightly vague message concluded. 

Sarri’s illness came just 24 hours after Atalanta head coach Ivan Juric was admitted to hospital due to an inflammation of the upper respiratory tract. 

Lazio had only completed two days of pre-season training when their head coach was taken ill. The players returned for the pre-season camp on Monday, trained again on Tuesday, and will go again as normal on Wednesday under Sarri’s guidance, the club has confirmed.

La Repubblica reports that Lazio coach Maurizio Sarri was taken ill and was hospitalised at a private clinic in Rome this morning.

Lazio coach Sarri was admitted to the private clinic Villa Mafalda in Rome on Wednesday, according to a report from La Repubblica.

Lazio coach Sarri admitted to hospital

There are currently few details available about Sarri’s condition, but the Italian newspaper reports that Sarri fell ill this morning and is undergoing medical tests at the hospital.

Sarri returned to Lazio just a few weeks ago

Sarri returned to Lazio only a few weeks ago, signing a two-year contract with an option for a further campaign.

The 66-year-old is a Serie A winner with Juventus and also won the Europa League with Chelsea in the 2018-19 season.

Unfortunately, he’s not the only Serie A coach dealing with health issues these days, as his colleague Ivan Juric of Atalanta missed the first day of pre-season on Tuesday due to inflammation of the upper respiratory tract and is also in hospital.

Lazio haven’t yet released any official statement regarding Sarri’s condition.

Circa 10,000 Lazio fans staged a protest in Rome today against President Claudio Lotito’s running of the club and the struggling stadium project.

An appeal went out among the fan clubs in the Eternal City and they flocked to largo Corrado Ricci, marching all the way up to the Fori Imperiali.

According to reports, there were circa 10,000 supporters who turned out to protest President Lotito.

He has been at the helm since 2004, having effectively saved the Biancocelesti from bankruptcy under previous owner Sergio Cragnotti, but his tenure has also seen controversy.

Lotito under fire at Lazio

None more so than this summer, because Lazio failed three different financial stress tests and have therefore been placed under a transfer embargo.

They are not even able to sign free agents until January 2026, unless Lotito pumps fresh funds into their coffers, something that he insists is unnecessary.

The protest also continued with a group representing the ultras who met with political figures to discuss the status of the stadium project.

Lotito has for years tried to revitalise the existing Stadio Flaminio into his club’s own arena, but assessor for sport Alessandro Onorato told fans the local council has for months been waiting for paperwork that hasn’t been forthcoming.

“We expressed our concern over the situation at Lazio and wait for the council to make its position known if the economic condition and financial plans of the club are not clarified.”

This morning, the club released a formal statement denying rumours that the club had been put up for sale.