Arsenal confirm Riccardo Calafiori deal to kick off major summer transfer business

Arsenal have continued their summer spending by completing a £42million move for Italy defender Riccardo Calafiori.

The Gunners will pay Bologna £33.7m upfront for the 22-year-old, with the rest of the fee made up in add-ons.

Calafiori has signed a five-year contract with Arsenal and is the club’s second summer signing after they made goalkeeper David Raya’s loan move from Brentford permanent for £27m.

“We welcome Riccardo and his family to Arsenal,” said Mikel Arteta. “He is a great signing and gives us huge strength to reinforce our defence.

“Riccardo is a big personality and character, with specific skills which will make us stronger as we push to win major trophies.

“He has already shown great development in recent seasons with his performances for both Bologna and Italy, with his progression and development in the past year being really impressive.

“We’re looking forward to working with Riccardo, integrating him into the squad, and supporting him in the years to come.”

Calafiori will provide competition for Arsenal at left-back and in the heart of defence as well.

He excelled for Italy at Euro 2024, despite them crashing out in the last 16, and that came after a brilliant season in Serie A.

Calafiori helped Bologna qualify for the Champions League and caught the eye of a number of clubs this summer, including Juventus.

“It has been a great team effort in completing this transfer and we welcome Riccardo to the family,” said Arsenal sporting director Edu.

“We identified Riccardo as part of our strategy to sign players who fit our profile and will reinforce our squad to compete at the highest level.

“He is 22 but brings quality and experience. He will quickly grow into being an Arsenal player.

“Riccardo has consistently shown his quality for his club and country. He was one of the best players in Serie A last season, and gave strong performances for Italy in the Euros this summer.

“Mikel and our coaches are excited to start working with Riccardo, and we all look forward to seeing him in our shirt.”