Italy international Riccardo Calafiori has put himself even more in the spotlight with his good performances at the European Championships. As expected for weeks, Arsenal FC have now been awarded the contract for the young defender’s services
In recent weeks, the Gunners have consistently been the favorites for the transfer of Riccardo Calafiori. The deal was completed on Monday and the talented Italian defender will now play in the English Premier League. Calafiori’s former club FC Basel are also expected to participate in the transfer proceeds the player generates. Possibly also AS Roma, where the Roman-born player trained from 2011 to 2020.
In any case, Calafiori is now embarking on his first really big adventure – with a Premier League title contender. The Italian has been given a contract until 2029, as well as the shirt number 33. 45 million euros are being discussed as a transfer fee, which could rise even further due to bonuses.
With his attacking drive and dribbling prowess, the defender has become the most expensive Italian defender in history – ahead of Leonardo Bonucci in 2017 when he moved from Juventus to Milan (€42 million).
Arteta finds him “impressive “
Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta is more than impressed with his new protégé – and is quoted in the club’s official statement as saying: “He gives us further strength to improve our defense.”
The Londoners were runners-up last season, just two points behind champions Manchester City, and had the best defense in the English top flight, conceding just 29 goals. Arteta continued: “Riccardo has a great personality and a great character – and he has specific skills that will make us stronger on the way to major titles. He has already shown that with his great development in recent seasons for Bologna and Italy. That’s been impressive. “
The defender – formerly on the left, now at home in the middle – made his first forays into Serie A with Roma and CFC Genoa. After a stint at Basel in the 2022/23 season, he returned to the Italian top flight last summer – to FC Bologna.
Calafiori had a strong season with the club from Emilia-Romagna under coach Thiago Motta (now Juventus) as a member of the defensive back three and finished fifth in the table to secure a ticket to the Champions League. Calafiori appeared in 30 league games and scored two goals. In total, the 22-year-old has made 43 Serie A appearances, 26 in the Swiss top flight and eleven in the Europa Conference League.
EM appearances as a final letter of application
For weeks, Arsenal had finally emerged as the favorites in the bidding for the defensive player, who only made his national team debut in Italy’s 0-0 draw against Turkey at the beginning of June and then continued to draw attention to himself at the European Championship.
Although he scored an own goal in Italy’s 1-0 defeat against the eventual European champions Spain, Calafiori set up Mattia Zaccagni’s late equalizer in the final group game against Croatia, enabling the Squadra Azzurra to reach the round of 16. The high-flyer then missed out on the tournament against Switzerland (0:2) due to a yellow card
