Lazio defender Alessio Romagnoli is still hoping to seal a transfer to Al-Sadd after the botched January move.
Alessio Romagnoli Already Tried to Leave Lazio in January
The 31-year-old has been irritated by Claudio Lotito’s broken promises regarding a pay raise, which dates back to 2023. In January, he was on the cusp of leaving Lazio and joining Roberto Mancini’s Al-Sadd.
The two clubs negotiated until the final hours before the Qatari transfer market deadline, but the move collapsed when the Lazio president asked the defender to waive three months of wages, and the centre-back refused the request as a matter of principle.
Why Romagnoli to Al-Sadd Collapsed in The Winter
While Romagnoli rejoined Maurizio Sarri’s squad in early February, Al-Sadd’s interest never faded away. The Qatari champions had reportedly promised the former AC Milan captain to try to sign him again in the summer. In recent months, the player was said to be reluctant to join due to the ongoing unrest in the Middle East, but he has seemingly put these concerns behind him.
Romagnoli Awaiting a Summer Offer from Al-Sadd
According to Italian journalist Alfredo Pedulla, Romagnoli is still eager to sign for the Arabian club, and he hopes that they’ll keep their word by submitting a new offer in the summer.
The Italian defender still has one year left on his Lazio contract. And while donning the Aquile jersey was a dream come true for the club’s lifelong supporter, his deteriorating relationship with Lotito and the club’s shambolic status prompted him, along with others, to seek an escape rope. Therefore, Saturday’s contest against Pisa could well be Romagnoli’s last appearance in Lazio colors.
#Romagnoli confida che l’#AlSadd confermi quanto promesso per l’estate, come rivelato a fine gennaio 👇 https://t.co/1xC7Nqr15m
— Alfredo Pedullà (@AlfredoPedulla) May 18, 2026
Massive overhaul happening at Lazio.
– Half the starting lineup from this season will be sold or not resigned (Guendouzi, Taty, Gila, Romagnoli, Zaccagni, Maldini, Basic)
– New manager (TBD)
– New sporting director (TBD)
– Ongoing stadium boycott
This will be one of the most interesting transfer windows in years for Lazio…. Mixed emotions.
In terms of success, what exactly did the core of this squad do in the last 3 years?
The sad thing is that we “replaced” legends like Ciro, Luis Alberto and Felipe Anderson with these players where they would been benchwarmers at best 5 years ago.
Absolutely. From a squad perspective (outside of Romagnoli and Gila), you’re 100% correct.
The mixed emotions stem from which direction the club will head in. With the financial constraints, finding legends like Ciro, SMS, etc will be a tall task… I fear that Lazio will be stuck in a cycle of Sassuolo, Udinese, etc as a 8th-10th place team.
If the reports are true of Sogliano replacing Fabiani, and Lotito making November 2027 a goal to be debt free – then Lazio’s spending power to replace the already mediocre squad is low.
Big replacement indeed. I do hope Provedel gets sold as well. Would indeed be a massive overhaul of the squad. Which a new hopefully younger trainer can start building upon.
Getting salaries down significantly and stop pretending like Lazio is a big team. With a squad that likely be worth as much as a Parma and perhaps Sassuolo. Painful yes, but two decades with nothing producing youth facility, terrible outgoing transfer policy while spending too much on salaries.
Keeping the club alive while a new stadium gets closer and closer.
I wouldn’t mind seeing Provedel stay. He’d be a great mentor for Motta. This largely depends on what happens with Mandas.
There are still scenarios where the loan becomes an obligation to buy. All of us should be tuning in to the EL final tomorrow and cheering for Villa.