Riccardo Calafiori celebrates with Arsenal teammate Piero Hincapie (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
My colleague Simon Phillips recently covered an interesting story about Chelsea’s interest in Riccardo Calafiori, and I’ve had some more information on the Arsenal defender’s future.
Although I’ve also been told there is some interest from Chelsea, it seems this is not currently considered a realistic deal for two reasons.
Firstly, Arsenal don’t want to sell to a rival, and secondly, Calafiori himself is understood to favour a return to Italy if possible, with the former Bologna man not short of interest from Serie A.
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Chelsea’s interest in Calafiori is genuine and dates back to before he moved to Arsenal, with the Blues also one of the clubs in for the player in the summer of 2024.
Still, Chelsea will likely have to look elsewhere for new defensive additions, with Nottingham Forest’s Murillo widely linked as one of their top targets for that area of their squad.
Riccardo Calafiori open to Serie A transfer return
One interesting domino effect that could impact Calafiori’s future is the situation at Inter Milan, who face losing Alessandro Bastoni to Barcelona.
Inter are looking for a replacement for Bastoni and sources in the industry have informed me that Calafiori is someone they’re keen on for that role.
Arsenal’s preference would be to keep the 23-year-old and there’s not currently anything advanced on an exit, but it looks like one to watch as the player himself is keen on more playing time.
“Calafiori isn’t pushing to leave Arsenal, but he’s fallen behind Piero Hincapie in the pecking order this season, so Inter feel it’s a deal that would be worth exploring,” one source told me. “He’s keen to return to Italy at some point, and though this is a bit sooner than expected, it can’t be ruled out…
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