Mikel Arteta Shares Honest Thoughts on Riccardo Calafiori His Arsenal Debut in the Emirates Cup Win

Riccardo Calafiori made his debut for Arsenal on Sunday, contributing to the team’s 2-0 win against Lyon, which concluded their pre-season matches.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta noted that Calafiori felt the “love” from the fans following his successful debut in the Emirates Cup.

Arteta also praised the pre-season, describing it as “positive” after the Gunners’ 2-0 triumph over Olympique Lyonnais. With the Premier League season set to begin against Wolves on Saturday, the goals for Arsenal came from centre-backs William Saliba and Gabriel, who scored with headers from Declan Rice’s assists in the first half.

But the biggest cheer of the sunny afternoon came when £42m signing Calafiori came on after the break. “I just love it when the fans react like that to one of your own,” said Arteta.

“The way you feel it straight away, it’s love, you are respected, they are right behind you. And that’s an unbelievable platform for someone to join our club. That’s the platform for many players to join our club.”

The former Bologna defender, Italy’s best player at Euro 2024, started at left-back and then switched to centre-back after Arteta made six changes – and eight in all – after 77 minutes.

“He brings a lot of versatility because he can play in two or three different positions and especially in attack, occupy different spaces because he’s a real defender,” the Arsenal manager continued.

“When you see his press and physicality, how he goes into duels, it’s unbelievable. And then obviously he’s done a lot last year, he’s a player than can improve us.”

Apart from securing the permanent signing of goalkeeper David Raya, Arsenal’s only other new acquisition is Calafiori. However, the team continues to seek additions in the midfield and striker positions.

Eddie Nketiah remains a target for Marseille. Manager Mikel Arteta stated that Jurrien Timber’s foot is “fine,” but Takehiro Tomiyasu is sidelined for “weeks” due to a knee injury.

In a recent match, former Arsenal player Ainsley Maitland-Niles and ex-West Ham forward Said Benrahma were part of the Lyon squad that eventually forced Raya into a save from substitute Ernest Nuamah on a counterattack after 87 minutes. Lyon then opted out of the scheduled post-match penalty shootout.

Following a pre-season that included three matches in the USA—a draw against Bournemouth, a victory over Manchester United, and a loss to Liverpool—Arsenal also secured a midweek win over Bayer Leverkusen.

Arteta expressed satisfaction with the team’s preparations for the upcoming season. Bukayo Saka came close to scoring in the second half by hitting the post.

“Really good test today again,” he said. “I think overall it’s been a positive pre-season that the tour and a lot of people put in a lot of effort to make it work. And it was a success, and then the two games we’ve had here have been very competitive.

”The team was exceptional, especially in the first half, we played at the highest level. We maintained it and we dropped a little bit in the second half, the conditions were tough but good one as well. So overall, very pleased.”

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