Lazio Weigh Mauro Icardi and Yves Bissouma as Gattuso Guards Squad Balance

Lazio’s transfer window did not end with the deadline. It simply changed tempo.

With the summer market closed, the club have turned fully to the pool of free agents, testing what is left out there and what truly fits Gennaro Gattuso’s plans. Two names sit on the table: Mauro Icardi and Yves Bissouma.

The Biancocelesti have already dipped into this market once, bringing in Portuguese defender Diogo Leite on a free. Even after that deal, there is still room to manoeuvre: two slots remain open on the official Serie A squad list, created by the omissions of Patric and Luca Pellegrini.

On paper, that space invites a marquee move. President Claudio Lotito is described by Corriere dello Sport, via TuttoMercatoWeb, as still fascinated by the idea of signing Icardi, the former Inter striker now without a club after his departure from Galatasaray. A proven Serie A goalscorer, available without a transfer fee, is the kind of opportunity that usually lights up a president’s imagination.

Gattuso, though, is not easily swayed by romance or nostalgia.

From the outset, the coach asked for a different profile up front: a central striker with mobility, able to press, stretch defences and work for the team. That demand led to the late summer arrival of Andrea Pinamonti, a forward seen as a better fit for the intensity and structure Gattuso wants.

That is why, for the man on the bench, Icardi is no priority. The coach is concentrating on getting Pinamonti fully match-fit and integrated rather than reshaping the pecking order to accommodate a penalty-box specialist. For now, the idea of Icardi sits on the back burner, interesting to the board, far less convincing to the technical staff.

While the Icardi debate simmers, another option has surfaced in midfield.

Yves Bissouma, formerly of Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton, has emerged as a potential solution to recent injury problems in the centre of the pitch. His profile is different: energy, ball-winning, Premier League experience. For a squad suddenly stretched in that area, his availability naturally attracts attention.

Yet Lazio are not rushing to pull the trigger on either front. The club, aware of the flexibility afforded by those two open squad places, intend to take their time, monitor the physical condition of the current group and weigh up whether an addition is truly necessary.

The market is closed, but the decisions that shape Lazio’s season are not.