Riccardo Calafiori has emerged as one of the most in-demand players of the summer and Arsenal have reportedly surged into the lead in the race for his signature.
The Bologna centre-back was extremely impressive for Italy at Euro 2024 in the group stages, before being suspended for their Round of 16 loss to Switzerland.
Calalfiori’s performances caught the attention of top clubs across Europe, with Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool all interested in signing him.
Juventus are also keen to sign Calafiori this summer. Their new manager Thiago Motta was at Bologna last season and he wants an instant reunion with the defender.
Arsenal have made the first big move in the race though and according to today’s edition of Corriere dello Sport, they’ve submitted an offer of €47m (£39.8m) for the 22-year-old.
Bologna swiftly ‘rejected’ that offer, before informing the Gunners’ sporting director Edu that they will only accept a bid of €50m (£42.4m).
They haven’t been deterred, and the report claims that Arsenal have given Bologna their ‘guarantee’ that they are ‘ready’ to submit a new offer and match their €50m valuation.
Chelsea could still make offer for Italy star
Sources exclusively revealed to TEAMtalk on Tuesday that Chelsea are also expected to submit an offer for Calafiori, so the battle for the centre-back might not be over just yet.
Corriere dello Sport’s report doesn’t make clear whether Arsenal have officially sent their improved offer to Bologna or just given them their verbal ‘guarantee’ – so the Blues could have a window of opportunity to hijack their approach.
The problem for Enzo Maresca’s side, however, is that Chelsea cannot offer Champions League football to Calafiori, something the player considers a factor in deciding his next move.
Juventus, on the other hand, are also at a disadvantage because they will struggle to match his €50m price tag, which Arsenal have already agreed to do.
As for Liverpool, their stance is not revealed in the report but there’s no doubt that they’re looking to sign a new centre-back, so they could still throw their hat into the ring.
Mikel Arteta is more than happy with his Arsenal centre-back partnership of Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba but wants more competition for them in case one gets injured.
That has happened on a few occassions over the past two seasons and had a negative effect on their Premier League title aspirations.
Calafiori certainly has the potential to be an excellent long-term addition for the North London club and they seem determined to get their man, if the talk coming out of Italy is to be believed.
It will be interesting to see how this story develops in the coming days but it seems Arsenal are the favourites to sign Calafiori at this stage.
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