Arsenal close in on agreement to sign Calafiori - Romano

Tom Weber

Updated: 20 Jul 2024 10:58 BST
3 min read

Arsenal are on the verge of reaching a 'total agreement' to sign Riccardo Calafiori, according to Fabrizio Romano.

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The Gunners appear to have finally achieved a breakthrough in talks with Bologna over defensive star Calafiori. The deal had been stalling for weeks due to a discrepancy between the demands of the Serie A side and what Arsenal were willing to pay.

As Bologna will be owed a whopping 50 per cent of the profit made on the 22-year-old to his former club Basel, the Champions League-bound side were keen to squeeze as much value out of him as possible due to needing funds to strengthen their side.

With Arsenal unwilling to go much higher than €50 million due to his relatively late emergence and injury record, the negotiations dragged on and eventually came to a standstill. Rumours about the deal had abounded, with some claiming that it would go through anyway, while others claimed that it was off.

Now, it seems, the more positive outlook was the correct one as Arsenal have made some major progress.

Arsenal close to agreement

According to Fabrizio Romano, there has been a breakthrough after a fresh round of talks. He reports that Arsenal are now close to a 'total agreement' with Bologna over the deal. Calafiori had already given the green light to a move weeks ago.

The Italy star, coming off a spectacular Serie A season and also impressing at Euro 2024, is set to sign a five-year contract at Arsenal until 2025. According to Romano, today's progress comes after some talks 'behind the scenes' with the player's agent Alessandro Lucci.

Arsenal are now bullish about their chances of being able to secure their top target. Calafiori is a versatile, left-footed defender and exactly the profile Mikel Arteta is looking for, with Arsenal having also been extensively linked with Ajax youngster Jorrel Hato, who, like the Italian, can play at centre-back and left-back.