Riccardo Calafiori to Arsenal transfer update as Mikel Arteta plan revealed and £42m deadline set

Arsenal will be hoping to announce their second summer signing this week as final negotiations are ongoing with Bologna for the transfer of Riccardo Calafiori. David Raya was officially unveiled as the Gunners' first summer addition last week with his loan move from Brentford made permanent for £27million.

Mikel Arteta and Edu now look to be eyeing defensive reinforcement with Calafiori quite clearly the priority target. An agreement on personal terms has already been reached as talks over a £42million transfer with Bologna continue to progress with the Gunners keen to have the 22-year-old on their pre-season tour of the US, as per the Guardian.

Sunday, July 21 looks set to be the day Arteta takes his players overseas which gives Edu just under two weeks to wrap up the Calafiori deal. Having impressed in Serie A and at the European championships, the Italy international was in high demand with Liverpool, Manchester United and Real Madrid all showing an interest.

However, once Arsenal officially entered the race, Emirates Stadium became his favoured destination if he was to seal a departure from Bologna. The Italian outfit have been rather relaxed in their exit stance with it clear for some time it would have been impossible to keep hold of Calafiori.

With that in mind, and Arteta clearly of the belief Arsenal would win the race for his signature, a plan for how to get the best out of him is already in place. While mostly utilised at left centre-back last season, Calafiori is capable of slotting into a back three while also being deployed at left-back, as he did many times at former club Basel.

On the ball, he is extremely impressive with his assist for Italy's last-gasp goal against Croatia at Euro 2024 proving as such. If deployed at full-back, Calafiori is also capable of inverting into midfield which certainly explains Arteta's desire to bring him in.

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With Calafiori able to play in so many positions, exits for Oleksandr Zinchenko and Jakub Kiwior could be fast-tracked if a final agreement is reached with Bologna. Zinchenko has been mooted as a potential departee this summer for some time, while interest from Italy in Kiwior is perhaps tempting Arteta into raising further funds.

If both depart, as Calafiori comes in, Arteta would be left with Ben White, Jurrien Timber, Takehiro Tomiyasu, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes as his defensive options. Considering the importance of squad depth, it could be worth making another addition at the back or alternatively promoting a youth star, such as Brooke-Norton Cuffy into the senior team.