Tuttosport: Tottenham preparing an approach for Riccardo Calafiori
Tuttosport: Tottenham preparing an approach for Riccardo Calafiori
How starved are we for quality transfer rumors? Very! It feels like things have slowed to a crawl as we glom around various online sources for any nuggets of transfer information that may not be likely, but may be at least plausible.
God help me, I’ve even started to go back to the Italian media, something I’ve more or less written off since Antonio Conte left the club. But needs must — today, Tuttosport is reporting that Spurs are preparing an approach for Bologna and Italy left-sided central defender Riccardo Calafiori.
Is “preparing an approach” basically weasel words with no real meaning barring any solid leaks from either club? Yeah. But I’m so desperate for any news that I’m temporarily setting aside my skepticism because I kinda want this to happen.
Calafiori, 22, was one of the last players to be called into Italy’s squad after a breakout season with Bologna, and has had an impressive EUROs, slotting into the starting lineup and helping the Azzurri eke into the Round of 16 against Switzerland.
Honestly, Calafiori is exactly the kind of left sided defensive reinforcement that Tottenham need as they prepare to return to European competition next season. Radu Dragusin can PLAY on the left as we’ve seen, but he’s more comfortable on the right. Calafiori can play both as a central defender and as a left back. He’s good enough that he should be able to make the step up to the Premier League and would offer Ange Postecoglou a non-Ben Davies versatile defender on that side who could grow into a starting role.
Calafiori was closely linked to a move to Juventus, furthering the narrative that Italian players don’t really like to leave Italy, but Juventus has since backed off after having a €25m offer rejected because he’s out of their budget. Tuttosport reports that Bologna have upped their asking price for Calafiori to €50m (£42m), which is a lot for a 22-year-old but still in the ballpark for what we could expect Tottenham to spend for a player, should they be interested. But the same report states that Arsenal are now also interested in the player, because of course they are.
Look, I have no idea how much of this is real and how much of this is the Italian media hyping an Italian player to boost the price for an Italian club. What I do know is Spurs need another defensive reinforcement (among other things) and Calafiori would be a fantastic addition to the squad. He’s not going to move anywhere until after the EUROs and he’s also suspended for the R16 match against Switzerland after picking up two yellows in the group stage, but if the Azzuri get eliminated that could grease some wheels.
So do I know this is true? Nope. But I certainly hope Calafiori’s name is one that is high on Johan Lange’s transfer list. In this brave new leak-proof world, that’s about as good as we’re gonna get right now.