The £25 million player that Arteta personally wants is ready to join Arsenal

The £25 million player, who Mikel Arteta personally wants from Arsenal, is ready to give his shine to join the north Londoners and Bologna defender Riccardo Calafiori.

Riccardo Calafiori agrees personal terms to join Arsenal

The 22-year-old appears firmly in the eyes of Edu as his first signing of the summer, with Fabrizio Romano confirming this week that Arsenal have now opened talks with Bologna over a deal for Calafiori.

Romano says that both clubs are currently negotiating this amount, and these negotiations will continue in the next few days as Bologna wants around $42 million to sell their defender.

Calafiori has already agreed a five-year deal with Arsenal, however, which is no doubt a certainty for Edu as he looks to provide Arteta with a top-quality centre-back to replace William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes.

The Italian, who helped guide Bologna to next season's Champions League spot, also enjoyed a good campaign with his country at Euro 2024. World Cup winner Gianluca Zambrotta praised Calafiori for an “extraordinary” performance at the tournament, and he was injured. he missed out on suspension in the Last 16 against Switzerland.

The Swiss put Luciano Spalletti to the sword, winning 2-0 in Berlin, with Calafiori's absence widely acknowledged to have played a major role in their defeat.

The former FC Basel player, who can play at left-back if required, will arrive at the Emirates with a strong portfolio and allow Arteta to cover more positions.

Patrick Dorgu is set to join Arsenal alongside Calafiori

With Calafiori eyeing a move to the Hale End, in a transfer swap, he could be joined by another Serie A defender in Patrick Dorgu.

According to Pianeta Lecce, Dorgu is ready to say yes to joining Arsenal this summer, as well as his team Lecce. Arteta personally views the defender as one of his first options to strengthen that squad, and the Gunners will apparently move to open talks with Dorgu's team through intermediaries soon.

The 19-year-old, who will cost around £25 million according to Pineta, made 32 appearances for Lecce in Serie A last season, scoring two goals, and can play up top as a left-back.

“You can just say that some players can move at an amazing speed,” said Denmark Under-21s coach Steffen Højer to bold.dk.

“He's already had a lot of minutes to play in Serie A with Lecce, and he's done really well. What's special about him is that he's quiet and calm, but things are incredibly natural to him. The football field.

“When he is put on the field, and it doesn't matter which team, he just fits, and he just makes a lot of good decisions for a young player. He has clear qualities, then there is a lot of work to be done in terms of being part of the U21s, but also finally making the national team.”