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Arsenal have received an update on Riccardo Calafiori after the Gunners new signing was forced off the pitch with an injury during Italy’s Nations League opener against France.
The versatile defender, signed in the summer for £42million from Serie A side Bologna, started for the Azzurri on Friday night as they recovered from Bradley Barcola’s early goal inside just 12 seconds to win 3-1 in Group A2 thanks to goals from Federico Dimarco, Davide Frattesi and Giacomo Raspadori and an inspired performance from Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali in his first international appearance since serving a 10-month ban for breaching betting rules.
However, the only downside to an otherwise terrific night for Italy, who recovered from a disappointing end to the match to defend their European title in style with a first win in Paris for 70 years, was Calafiori’s injury in a collision with Ousmane Dembélé.
The centre-back initially attempted to play on despite his problem after receiving treatment on the pitch, but was eventually replaced by Alessandro Buongiorno with just under 20 minutes remaining in the game at the Parc des Princes.
The sight of Calafiori going off injured ahead of a crucial first week back after the international break in which Arsenal face massive Premier League away games against north London opponents Tottenham and title rivals Manchester City, sandwiched between their opening Champions League game away to Atalanta, has caused understandable panic among Gunners fans.
However, Italy coach Luciano Spalletti revealed after the match that he believed the problem was not serious and that the 22-year-old could well be fit to play when Italy take on Israel in Budapest on Monday night.
“We have to evaluate Riccardo, but with our staff we have a good chance of having him back with us for the next game,” Spalletti said.
Such an update will come as a huge relief to Arsenal and Mikel Arteta, who is already without Declan Rice against Spurs following the England midfielder’s controversial sending off against Brighton last weekend.
New signing Mikel Merino is also likely to be sidelined for up to two months with a fractured shoulder suffered in his first training session at London Colney after joining the club from Real Sociedad last week, while Gabriel Jesus (groin), Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) and Kieran Tierney (hamstring) are also in the treatment room.
Martin Odegaard also suffered a knock against Brighton, sparking fears of a potential midfield crisis for Arteta against Tottenham, but the Arsenal captain allayed any injury concerns before starting and playing the full 90 minutes for Norway in their 0-0 draw away to Kazakhstan on Friday.
