There are two kinds of transfers in particular that football fans are often taught to beware.
One) the so-called ‘tournament signing’. When a club pays potentially over the odds for a player on the back of an impressive few weeks at a World Cup or a European Championship.
And two) players standing out in poor sides. An eye-catching performer in a dreadful team can often make said player look a little better than he actually is.
But, in the case of Riccardo Calafiori’s rumoured £42 million switch to Arsenal, there is a sense that both of those factors can be disregarded.
Yes, the Bologna battering ram centre-half was – alongside goalkeeper Gigi Donnarumma – clearly Italy’s finest performer during a miserable Euro 2024 campaign ended emphatically by Switzerland in the round-of-16 stage.
But unlike say Sofyan Amrabat – a stand-out for Morocco but not so much at Fiorentina before his move to Man United – Calafiori’s form at club level speaks for itself.
Arsenal close in on Bologna defender Riccardo Calafiori
The kind of barnstorming, buccaneering runs out of defence which set up Mattia Zaccagni’s stoppage time equaliser against Croatia had been showcased countless times throughout 2023/24 for a Bologna side who secured Champions League qualification for the very first time.
Legendary Italy defender Marco Materazzi, when quizzed on Calafiori by Sport Mediaset, believes that the 22-year-old’s Azzurri displays act as further proof of his potential as a future world-leading centre-half.
The 2006 World Cup winner insists that Arsenal might also be the ‘ideal’ destination for a man who has also been heavily linked with a move to a Juventus side who recently snatched Bologna head coach Thiago Motta.
“He had an incredible championship,” Materazzi says. “And, if he leaves Bologna, he must make the right choice. Either he goes with Thiago Motta (to Juventus), otherwise I read about Arsenal.
“The Premier League is a different kind of football. But (Arsenal) could be the ideal team for him.”
Gunners lead Chelsea and Tottenham in race for Italy star
Mikel Arteta’s football would certainly not represent too much of a change for a man used to Motta’s way of doing things. The Arsenal boss also favours a heavy possession style, with his centre-halves not only the last line of defence but the first line of attack.
Calafiori, a left-footer, would add depth to The Gunners backline and offer genuine competition for Gabriel Magalhaes.
HITC understands that, in addition to Arsenal, London neighbours Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United and Chelsea have also been admiring Calafiori.
The Emirates now appears comfortably his most likely destination, however. The uber-reliable Gianluca di Marzio reports that Arsenal are at the front of the queue with Bologna maybe minded to consider offers in the £42 million region.
“The Premier League (has) a lot of money,” Stefano Impallomeni, the former Roma and Parma midfielder, tells Tuttomercatoweb. “I would see him doing well anywhere anyway. It would be a great victory for him.
“This guy is young, he has experienced everything. He has become a complete player, and all these experiences have led him to show a personality that is not so obvious at his age. He has shown himself to be a strong profile.
“When you see him play, Calafiori is always very centred and balanced. He has the signs of a great personality.
“If I were him, I would accept going abroad.”
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