Arsenal have made their first direct approach to Bologna on Thursday evening to discuss the possibility of signing Italy international Riccardo Calafiori, according to the latest reports.
Arsenal in contact with Bologna for Calafiori
According to Football Italia transfer expert Matteo Moretto, as well as Fabrizio Romano, negotiations between Arsenal and Bologna are now underway, following an excellent breakout season under Thiago Motta in 2023-24.
Moretto reports that Arsenal have an agreement in principle on personal terms. Romano suggests that there will be no issues on personal terms and that it is now down to the two clubs to negotiate.
Multiple outlets in Italy suggest that Bologna’s asking price for Calafiori is around the €50m mark.
Arsenal reportedly intend to fend off competition from Chelsea specifically, while a number of other clubs across Europe, including PSG and Bayer Leverkusen, have also expressed an interest in the promising and versatile youngster.
A product of the Roma academy, Calafiori joined Bologna from Basel for just €4m in the 2023 summer transfer window, and the Swiss club hold a 40% clause on the next sale.
Inizia ufficialmente la trattativa tra Arsenal e Bologna per Riccardo Calafiori.
Primo approccio diretto tra club, adesso l’Arsenal può accelerare per superare la concorrenza, soprattutto del Chelsea.
È stato già raggiunto un principio di accordo tra Arsenal e Calafiori sul…
— Matteo Moretto (@MatteMoretto) July 4, 2024
What a waste, flooding Italian football with foreigners when we have quality in our own backyard.
@Bob the problem is the Italian clubs don’t have the money to compete with foreign clubs when it comes to transfer fees and wages.