Riccardo Calafiori has been a revelation at Arsenal since making his move from Bologna last summer.
The Italy international joined the Gunners for a fee reportedly worth £42million, and he has made 24 outings for Mikel Arteta’s side so far.
Calafiori has had some injuries to deal with this season, and he has also had to deal with the emergence of Myles Lewis-Skelly at left-back.
However, the 22-year-old has taken all this in his stride and continues to be a key member of the Arsenal team.
Arteta has now shared what has surprised him about Calafiori in training since his arrival at the Emirates Stadium.
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Mikel Arteta says Riccardo Calafiori attacking intuition has surprised him
Arsenal are currently in the midst of an injury crisis that has seen most of their first-choice forwards ruled out.
Leandro Trossard, Raheem Sterling and Ethan Nwaneri are the only forwards at Arteta’s disposal, though he has also been using Mikel Merino up front.
Meanwhile, Calafiori has opened himself up to the prospect of covering in the front line thanks to his attacking prowess.
Arteta, speaking ahead of Sunday’s Premier League meeting with Manchester United, admitted he wasn’t aware just how good Calafiori was in attack.
When asked whether he was aware of Calafiori’s attacking intuition before signing him, Arteta replied, as per football.london: “No, he certainly has that capacity to flow in areas that for a defender is very unusual.
“So that was something that really caught my eye. The other one that is very unpredictable, sometimes chaotic and that can be very difficult as well from the opposition.
“And that eye on goal, especially in open play, to be fair, I didn’t have that understanding of the things that he could do.
“But you see day to day in training that he’s very capable of creating things that they are not there in that moment.”
Italy manager Luciano Spalletti previously spoke of how Calafiori is growing as a footballer and as a man at Arsenal, broadening his horizons while honing his talents.
What Riccardo Calafiori has said about playing up front for Arsenal
Not only does Calafiori have great movement and a superb eye for goal, but he’s also said he is open to playing up front if called upon.
Calafiori said, as per TMW: “As I have always said and I repeat, I feel I can play in any role and obviously I would be ready to play it (as a striker).
“Then, honestly, we should talk more about the technical and tactical aspects, it wouldn’t be easy because I’ve never done it in my life.
“Obviously, if you ask me I’ll do it, but I don’t know if it could really be an alternative.
“It’s one thing to already be there, as I always tell my teammates, and it’s another thing to get there on the run, which is a totally different thing. And I’m really good at that.”
