RICCARDO CALAFIORI: THREE ARSENAL PLAYERS WHO COULD LOSE THEIR STARTING POSITION

Arsenal have been extensively linked with the signing of Riccardo Calafiori from Bologna - but any such deal would see several players' game-time severely reduced.

The defender was arguably the biggest asset to Italy in their miserable Euro 2024 campaign, but fans of Serie would have known all about his ability in the build-up to the competition.

In barely a couple of days

,

Arsenal

have stepped up their interest in the 22-year-old

Calafiori

, and are “increasingly close” to completing a deal, according to expert

Gianluca Di Marzio

, who claims that a deal is edging near.

EXCLUSIVE:

Branthwaite won't push Man Utd deal despite accepting terms

But what does this mean for some of the Arsenal squad?

Calafiori plays at left-back for I Rossoblu which means that the players at the Gunners in that position are at risk of the chop. Though he can play centre-back, this area of the pitch is impenetrable for Arsenal, with Gabriel and William Saliba holding the fort there.

One way around it is if Ben White and Jurrien Timber compete at right-back and the Italian take the spot where Jaukb Kiwior and Oleksandr Zinchenko play, on the left side of defence.

And given the promise shown by Timber before his season-ending injury on opening day last season, it means that White is likely to see a reduced amount of game-time, too.

The versatile Calafiori

Calafiori is a left-sided centre back and left back. He was deployed mostly as the left centre-back in Thiago Motta’’s 4-2-3-1 system, as the club qualified for the 2024-25 Champions League.

It is an incredible achievement for a provincial side that had not been in Europe (discounting the minor Intertoto Cup) this century.

A big reason for Bologna’s Cinderella story was their mean defence led by Calafiori that conceded just 32 goals in 38 games, making Bologna the third-best defence in Serie A.

READ MORE:

Premier League summer transfers 2024: All the Done Deals

Born in Rome, Calafiori grew up in the Roma youth system as a highly-rated left-back and graduated through the ranks before making his senior debut in 2020.

However, he failed to make the grade at Roma and was loaned first to Genoa before being sold to Basel in Switzerland in 2022.

Bologna brought him back to Italy in the summer of 2023 and that is where his career really took off under Motta.

2024-07-04T12:16:07Z dg43tfdfdgfd