Riccardo Calafiori was one of the breakout stars of Euro 2024 — but Arsenal’s new signing is not just a ‘tournament’ buy.
Arsenal have followed 22-year-old Calafiori for months. They are not alone in that. Bayern Munich made enquiries, Real Madrid have been keen admirers, Juventus were in hot pursuit, and there was interest from elsewhere in the Premier League. The player has not been short of options.
And yet, since the end of last season, Arsenal have been Calafiori’s priority. He wanted to move to London and the Premier League, and be part of this exciting young team. Above everything else, he wanted to play for Mikel Arteta.
The Arsenal manager has been the driving force behind this deal. Arsenal’s scouting department had tracked the Calafiori’s dramatic progress at Bologna but it was Arteta who insisted on pressing ahead with the transfer.
Riccardo Calafiori was Arsenal’s top defensive transfer target this summer (Elianton/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)
Calafiori’s excellent performances at the Euros did not spark Arsenal’s interest but merely sealed the manager’s decision. They served as confirmation that this was a player with the quality and mentality to thrive on the biggest stage. Arteta was enamoured with Calafiori’s combination of technical ability, defensive intelligence and courage on the ball.
Arsenal did everything possible to back their manager’s hunch. Initially, they hoped to sell one of their existing defenders to facilitate Calafiori’s arrival.
After several weeks of talks, fears that Real Madrid may swoop in and try to gazump the deal saw Arsenal accelerate the signing. Sporting director Edu and his assistant Jason Ayto have struck a deal which could rise to a total of £42million ($53.9m) — although the guaranteed fee is considerably less. Having flown to London for a medical on Saturday, Calafiori has signed a five-year contract with Arsenal and joined his new team-mates Stateside in Philadelphia.
During the Euros, Calafiori played as a left-sided centre-back for Italy. His football education in the Roma academy, however, was principally as a left-back — and it is this role he is likely to revert to with Arsenal. His versatility is part of his appeal.
Like Ben White and Jurrien Timber, he provides Arteta with huge flexibility when it comes to naming his back four.
Mikel Arteta was the driving force behind Arsenal’s pursuit of Calafiori (Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
The Athletic first reported on Arsenal’s interest in a new left-sided defender in December 2023. Arsenal started the 2023-24 season with a number of availability issues in defence. Oleksandr Zinchenko started the season slowly while recovering from a calf problem and did not start his first Premier League match until September. Takehiro Tomiyasu also suffered with injury and suspension. In what was arguably the most significant blow, new signing Timber suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury on the opening day and was ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Arteta believes that in order to have a flexible, functional squad, he needs eight fit senior defenders. For much of last season, the Arsenal manager was short of that.
Over the course of the campaign, the left-back position suffered from a lack of continuity. Arsenal chopped and changed to cope with vacillating form and fitness issues.
Zinchenko, Tomiyasu and Jakub Kiwior all occupied the role at different points in the season. Of those, Tomiyasu arguably mounted the strongest case to make the position his but his absence from this summer’s US tour is illustrative of the injury problems that have undermined his time with Arsenal.
And so Arsenal found themselves looking for a new left-sided defender. The search was not straightforward — the demands Arteta places on the full-back position are highly specific. Ajax’s Jorrell Hato was under consideration but signed a new contract in the spring. Piero Hincapie of Bayer Leverkusen was another name put forward by the recruitment department.
Then Arteta landed on Calafiori as the ideal man for the position. The player was delighted — this was the move he had hoped for. Despite interest from elsewhere, Calafiori’s commitment to join Arsenal never wavered.
Calafiori impressed for Italy at Euro 2024 but Arsenal’s interest predated this summer (Nicolo Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Negotiations were complicated by three factors. Firstly, English clubs are often charged premium prices by clubs on the continent. Secondly, there was the issue of the close to 50 per cent sell-on fee owed by Bologna to Basel, who they signed him from in August 2023. Finally, there were Calafiori’s performances at the Euros. As each Italy game saw the defender win a host of new admirers, Edu saw only the final price rising.
Given all that, Arsenal feel they have struck a good deal. While the price may look steep for a defender who only really began to shine last season, the club believe that — as with their £50million investment in White in 2021 — Calafiori’s value will be proven in the long-term. The signing fits with Arsenal’s strategy of signing young players who have already amassed considerable experience. Throughout negotiations, they were helped by the fact that Calafiori had made his preference clear to Bologna.
Arsenal originally had designs on selling a defender first to help pay for Calafiori, with Kiwior the most likely candidate. In the end, they decided to proceed anyway to see off competing clubs. The financial burden was also eased when the club became confident of receiving a substantial fee for Emile Smith Rowe.
If Arteta was looking for a reference for Calafiori’s quality and character, he would have known just who to call. Calafiori’s manager last season was his good friend, the Brazilian-Italian coach Thiago Motta.
Arteta and Motta were born in the same year, 1982, and have known each other since they played together in midfield for Barcelona B. Their bond endures to this day. With Motta now installed as Juventus manager, the two friends became rivals in the race for Calafiori.
This is not the first time Arsenal have signed a defender who has played under Motta. In January 2023, Kiwior arrived having spent a season being coached by the 41-year-old manager at Spezia. Arteta and Motta share similar philosophies, so it’s hoped that will accelerate Calafiori’s adaptation.
Thiago Motta (left) and Calafiori helped guide Bologna to Champions League qualification last season (Giuseppe Maffia/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Calafiori will also be helped by the presence of his international team-mate Jorginho. The 32-year-old is likely to take Calafiori under his wing to help him settle into a new life in London.
As with any new player, Calafiori has areas where he must prove himself. There’s no doubting his technical ability, but the Premier League will provide a different physical challenge to Serie A or international football.
Availability is a critical attribute for Arteta. In 2018, when playing for Roma in the UEFA Youth League, a young Calafiori suffered a serious injury to his left knee, which threw his development into considerable doubt. The knee was repaired by the same American specialist who had treated Zlatan Ibrahimovic — seemingly successfully.
Calafiori played 30 Serie A games last season. Arsenal have done their homework — and a thorough medical — and believe Calafiori’s injury problems are behind him.
In the end, the strength of Arteta’s conviction was sufficient to allay any doubts. At his behest, Arsenal have landed one of the most exciting defensive talents in Europe. As they look to close down Manchester City, the foundations of this Arsenal team look stronger than ever.
(Top photos: Getty Images; design: Dan Goldfarb)
