Good news for Tottenham Hotspur. Bologna FC is set to sell key defender Riccardo Calafiori to a foreign league.
European soccer transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano reported on Tuesday that “Calafiori has agreed to join Juventus. He wants to stay in Serie A and play for Juventus, but there are problems between Juventus and Bologna. Bologna are open to offers from foreign leagues.”
Calafiori is an Italian defender. He can play both fullback and center back, and his athleticism at 6’2″ and 188 pounds allows him to win contested situations. He has excellent man-to-man defense and is considered a very good forward, both in attack and defense.
Born in Rome, Calafiori played for AS Roma. In the 2018-19 UEFA Youth League season, he suffered a ruptured cruciate ligament after a malicious tackle from an opponent in a match against Victoria Plzen. Calafiori continued his rehabilitation and Roma re-signed him until 2022.
In the 2019-20 season, Calafiori returned to Roma Primavera and was a regular starter. However, due to a series of injuries to Roma’s first team, he was called up to the first team for the first time when he was named in the squad for a UEFA Europa League home match against Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Calafiori made his first-team debut in the final Serie A match of the 2019-20 season against Juventus. He struggled to settle in at the start of the game, but after drawing a foul from Juventus’ Danilo, he converted the penalty and had a successful first-team debut.
In the 2020-21 season, he established himself as the backup left-back and received a lot of playing time, especially in the Europa League. He scored his first professional goal in the Europa League group stage at home against Young Boys, scoring 먹튀검증 from mid-range. In December 2020, Calafiori signed a new contract with Roma until June 2025.
After spending the 2021-22 season on loan at Genoa, Calafiori moved to FC Basel ahead of last season. Since his arrival, he has established himself as a regular in the squad, starting most of the games. He returned to his native Italian Serie A at the end of last season with a move to Bologna.
Calafiori has become a key player for Bologna this season. Since joining Bologna, he has mainly played as a left center back. In 30 Serie A appearances, he scored two goals and provided five assists, helping Bologna qualify for the UEFA Champions League next season.
Currently, Calafiori is being linked with a move to Juventus following the departure of Bologna coach Thiago Motta. Chelsea, with Enzo Maresca at the helm, have 메이저사이트 also been linked with a move. Tottenham have also joined the race.
Tottenham finished fifth in the English Premier League (EPL) this season and failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League. The mid-season losses of key defenders like Mickey van der Vaart and Destiny Udoh were painful. Spurs are looking to bolster their backup options with the signing of Calafiori.
Add to that the fact that Bologna are likely to send Calafiori abroad, and Spurs are smiling. Of course, they’ll have to make a satisfactory offer. “Bologna will wait until after Euro 2024 and will only sell if a big offer comes in,” Romero added.