Chelsea tried to hijack Arsenal’s move for Riccardo Calafiori at the exact moment the Gunners were holding transfer talks with Bologna, according to a report.
Sam Dean reports for The Telegraph that Arsenal faced serious competition to sign Riccardo Calafiori in 2024.
The Gunners had positioned themselves to make a move prior to the 2024 Euros, but the club were operating on a strict ‘one in, one out’ policy at the time. Emile Smith Rowe had to join Fulham if Arsenal were going to sign Calafiori.
By the time Arsenal were able to actually move forward with talks, Calafiori had impressed at the Euros, and he’d reportedly drawn the interest of both Real Madrid and Chelsea.
Arsenal’s pursuit was particularly disrupted by Chelsea’s move, as the Blues called Bologna to make an enquiry over Calafiori while the player’s former club were in a meeting with the Gunners.
Fortunately, Arsenal managed to see off their London rivals and complete the signing.
Calafiori has since made 73 appearances for Arsenal, almost twice as many as he managed in any other senior side prior to joining. The 24-year-old played 18 times for AS Roma’s first team, three times for Genoa, 38 times for FC Basel, and 33 times for Bologna before the Arsenal transfer.
It hasn’t all been smooth sailing, and Calafiori certainly would have played a lot more for Arsenal if not for his many injury setbacks. But he played a major role in the first half of the Gunners 2025/26 Premier League title-winning campaign, as well as starting every game in the May run-in.
This season, the Italy international has started every Premier League fixture for Arsenal, and that’s unlikely to change now, with Piero Hincapie sidelined for the next week or two.
Arsenal fans will be very glad that Chelsea’s attempt to lure their star left-back elsewhere didn’t work.
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