PREMIER LEAGUE

Arsenal signs the Italian man, Riccardo Calafiori

Arsenal Team

Italy defender Riccardo Calafiori has completed his move to Arsenal from Bologna in a deal worth £42 million ($53.9m), the north London club announced on Monday.

The 22-year-old defender was a member of the Azzurri squad at Euro 2024, after a season full of impressive performances at the heart of Bologna’s defence.

Calafiori has signed a five-year contract and joined up with his teammates in Philadelphia as Arsenal continue their preseason tour of the United States. He will wear the No. 33.

The 22-year-old was a key figure for Bologna last season as they secured Champions League qualification for the first time in 60 years.

The youngster was part of his country’s squad at Euro 2024, setting up the late Mattia Zacagna goal against Croatia which sent the Azzurri into the round of 16. However, he missed out through suspension as the Euros holders were eliminated by Switzerland.

Jorginho was part of Italy’s Euro 2020 winning squad, and met with Calafiori ahead of the youngster’s international debut just days before this year’s tournament. Speaking to club media, he reflected on how the midfielder “forced” him to make the move to North London.

https://x.com/premierleague/status/1818004057824612680

Calafiori’s time and impact with his former clubs

Riccardo Calafiori (born 19 May 2002) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Premier League club Arsenal and the Italy national team. One of Italy’s top young defenders, he is renowned for his physicality, positioning, and marking abilities.

A youth product of Roma, Calafiori signed his first contract with them on 16 June 2018. Calafiori suffered a near career-ending injury to his knee on 2 October 2018. Calafiori made his professional debut with Roma, in a 3–1 away win over Juventus. During the match, he won a penalty, which was successfully converted by teammate Diego Perotti.

Genoa loaned him, 2021-22, and he made three appearances for them in the January transfer window. Basel bought Calafiori and he made 34 appearances in 2022-23. He played four times in 2023-24 before being sold to Italian club Bologna.

Calafiori made 33 appearances for Bologna last season in all competitons, scoring two goals. 30 of his appearances came in Serie A. He also made five assists.

How will Calafiori’s future shape in Arsenal?

Calafiori will compete with Jurrien Timber for the left-back role, but with Takehiro Tomiyasu out injured, the Dutchman will also be needed to cover Ben White at right-back. This means the Italian is likely to get plenty of minutes at the start of the season.

His arrival surely spells the end for Jakub Kiwior who has failed to amaze since moving to the Emirates 18 months ago. He has reportedly said yes to joining Inter Milan.

Calafiori’s injury concerns stem from the devastating setback he suffered during a UEFA Youth League contest. He was playing for AS Roma against Viktoria Plzen in October 2018.

A career-threatening knee injury afflicted the then 16-year-old. During the latter stages of the contest, an ugly over-the-top challenge from Plzen’s Vaclav Svoboda forced Calafiori into a heap. The teenager tore all the ligaments in his left knee and meniscus, causing his knee to buckle later.

According to Opta, of defenders in Serie A who made a minimum of 10 appearances last season. Calafiori ranked second for recoveries per 90 (7.5), joint-fourth for overall assists (5) and ninth for passes per 90 (68.6).

Despite being just 22, Calafiori has already represented four clubs throughout his career. The defender rose through the ranks at Roma, initially donning the number 61 jersey as an academy graduate. The senior squad promoted the youngster to the number 13 position after two seasons of his making appearances for the team.

The defender who credits John Stones as the player his game resembles most, broke through the ranks at Roma before making the switch to Swiss giants FC Basel. It was there that Calafiori’s football career changed forever.

As featured on GoonerNews.com

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