The English Teams Riccardo Calafiori Would Have Considered Joining

Riccardo Calafiori is a name that keeps coming up more and more—and he’s an incredible player. If you watched him during the Euros 2024, you’ll know what we’re talking about—specifically, Italy’s opening game against Albania. He is an ambitious young talent who dreams big.

The 22-year-old defender has made rapid strides through the ranks, displaying his worth on national and international levels. Now, having checked off some of his earlier goals, he wanted to be part of the English game, and the game would be stupid not to have him.

Read on to learn which teams he was interested in joining and which team he chose as home.

West Ham United

One of the clubs that Calafiori had possibly considered to play for was West Ham United. West Ham are one of the cornerstones of English football, known for having passionate fans and incredible history.  As Jose Mourinho would say – they’re football heritage.

Over the past few years, the club has massively improved – it’s no secret West Ham went through a bit of a dip. For Calafiori, hard work, resilience, and ambition are the core values of West Ham, and he would’ve thrived to be part of it.

The rise of West Ham in recent performance and their quality showing in European competitions like the UEFA Europa League have seen them back on the map again. It’s also one reason why Calafiori liked West Ham: they’re showing strength through obstacles that they would also help him overcome, including the terrible knee injury he suffered when playing football at the youth level. He wants a team that’ll support him.

Having played at the London Stadium under a manager like David Moyes – an expert in nurturing young talents – should be ideal for Calafiori’s development as a high-level defender.

Chelsea

We’d say this one is a bit controversial after the 23/24 season for Chelsea – we all know how that one worked out for them. Still, they have a history of being a successful team from England and Europe. It’s the management and spending that’s the issue at the minute. It’s known all over that Chelsea competes at the highest levels, there is no doubt why a player of Calafiori’s caliber would’ve want to join such a prestigious club, even if the club is a mess.

Chelsea have always been famous for its excellence in nurturing young footballers into teams that will win big competitions. Chelsea can attract world-class players, making it appealing to any ambitious footballer. Just look how Cole Palmer’s season turned out when he made the move.

For Calafiori, he viewed Chelsea as an opportunity to confront the best of the world’s players, play in front of huge audiences, and increase his chances of adding more trophies to his growing collection. But that’s what he’s getting now he’s joined…

Arsenal

Arsenal are his new home.

Since Mikel Arteta took over at the Emirates Stadium, there have been significant changes, especially in building an exciting squad playing an attractive brand of football. That could really appeal to Calafiori, who can perform on any role within the pitch thanks to his flexibility and sheer skill.

Arsenal have not gone unnoticed – they recently built a team that should have finished on top. If a punter were sports betting in the UK, they were probably betting that Arsenal would win the title – and a lot of people were rooting for them after such a glorious performance all season. With Calafiori’s arrival, fans and the squad alike are expecting a bolstered left-hand-sided defence – not that their defence needed particular improvement, but Zinchenko was a weakness.

This season, Arsenal should be champions. They are built for it. They have built for it. Arteta had the team pickpocketed at a meal in preparation to stop them having their ‘medals’ stolen from under their noses. Is Calafiori the final piece of the puzzle?