Riccardo Calafiori: Aurafiore

[OnlyOne]

Calafiori is not "very very slow". Did you just see him against Hakimi and drew your conclusions from there?

Zinchenko and Jorginho are slow for example. Below you can compare Jorginho's 27.6 km/h top speed at the Euros vs. Calafiori's 32.5 km/h. 5 km/h faster is a lot.

He also just joined. He is good defensively, but it will take some time to adjust and develop more.

Scouting Riccardo Calafiori

Is the gallivanting Bologna defender the right choice for Arsenal's left? In this enormous scouting report, we pore through the tape and numbers to study his quality, profile, and projection

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Jorginho at the Euros:

27.6 Top speed (km/h)
26.7 avg. per match

Jorginho | Stats | Italy | UEFA EURO 2024

Visit UEFA.com for all the latest EURO 2024 stats on Jorginho, including goals, pass completion, top speed and more!

www.uefa.com

Calafiori at the Euros:
32.5 Top speed (km/h)
31.27 avg. per match

Riccardo Calafiori | Italy | UEFA EURO 2024

Visit UEFA.com for all the latest EURO 2024 stats on Riccardo Calafiori, including goals, pass completion, top speed and more!

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See this is all rubbish because top speed counts for nothing as you rarely get to on a small field. Multiple times Calafiori has been caught up by quick wingers because he’s ridiculously slow off the mark.

 

[drippin]

See this is all rubbish because top speed counts for nothing as you rarely get to on a small field. Multiple times Calafiori has been caught up by quick wingers because he’s ridiculously slow off the mark.

What do you call Jorginho (or Zinchenko) if you think Calafiori is "very very slow"? You put yourself in a corner with that silly statement.

"Counts for nothing." You're talking about your opinions mate. You have nothing, but a distorted view and will be proven wrong. He is not very very slow.

Even in that Calafiori struggles defensively. He has already played against two fast top attacks after just joining and coming back from a niggle. He will only get better.

 

[Farzad]

You mean well not wealth. Well done uncle you got corrected by one of da enlightened yutes

I didn’t use a metaphor dopey. Wealth is the correct usage, a well of information is a metaphor. A wealth of information is just an adjective

 

[El Duderino]

Too much attention put on pace in football generally tbh.

As long as you've got average pace and can read the game well you'll be fine. Getting rinsed by a sprinter will happen every now and again.

He's got a bit to work on defensively because he is a bit suspect at times but there's good talent there so I'm not worried. It's been a good start from him here, just need to round off a few of those rough edges.

His issues are mostly positional, so in time they should be fine given he is - unlike Zinchenko, for instance - a defender first.

 

[El Duderino]

See this is all rubbish because top speed counts for nothing as you rarely get to on a small field. Multiple times Calafiori has been caught up by quick wingers because he’s ridiculously slow off the mark.

Remember when we got top speed tests and Sokratis was among the top 3 (maybe 5?) or something?

 

[Rasmi]

Most of his problems wouldn’t be there if he plays as an actual LB. But you can’t expect him to invert and always be in position. That’s the trade off for inverted fullback you make

 

[drippin]

Remember when we got top speed tests and Sokratis was among the top 3 (maybe 5?) or something?

And? He was pretty fast. Jorginho would never get good top speed. I don't think he had Calafiori's speed even when in his prime. He had okayish acceleration, which is good to have in midfield.

In defence top speed matters more than in midfield, against transitions with a high line. Naturally for a lone DMF you want also good top speed against transitions, which is why Rice is important there and Jorginho has played LCM.

 

[Farzad]

Arteta is not playing a back 3.

I know but he should try it

 

[Farzad]

Most of his problems wouldn’t be there if he plays as an actual LB. But you can’t expect him to invert and always be in position. That’s the trade off for inverted fullback you make

Exactly, the way he plays he would occasionally get caught out even if he was really fast. By the way it was his run through heart of the box that opened the space for Martinelli to cross it for a wide open Trossard for the second goal. His presence completely changes the lack of creativity on our left and our lopsided attack.

By the way Savinho didn’t beat him for pace in City match. Cala made a mistake and over committed at the half way line and Savinho turned him. That could happen to Usain Bolt at fullback.

So far our attacking fullback has created 2 goals for us and cost us one. They will be caught out, if manager isn’t ok with drawback he would not use system

 

[grange]

Top end speed is irrelevant if you're caught out of position because it doesn't account for change of direction agility. By the time Cala reacts and turns, he's beat and has to desperately catch up. Busting a gut to catch up will put his hamstrings at serious unnecessary risk. It hasn't caused us harm yet but he has to understand the importance of spatial awareness.

Sports 101

 

[Red London]

There’s not enough room on the pitch for top speed to matter much if your acceleration is slow. Because even if you’re in a long-ish foot race catching up with a winger, your lack of acceleration means that you have too much catching up to do by the time you reach your top speed. And it’s not like the opposition is a slouch in terms of their top speed to let you catch up.

There’s not enough ground for it to matter much, unless you are chasing a winger like Trossard who seems to have good acceleration but horrendous top speed / sprint speed.

 

[Rasmi]

There’s not enough room on the pitch for top speed to matter much if your acceleration is slow. Because even if you’re in a long-ish foot race catching up with a winger, your lack of acceleration means that you have too much catching up to do by the time you reach your top speed. And it’s not like the opposition is a slouch in terms of their top speed to let you catch up.

There’s not enough ground for it to matter much, unless you are chasing a winger like Trossard who seems to have good acceleration but horrendous top speed / sprint speed.

Well in the end Artera prefers to play CBs as fullbacks. CBs in general are not as nimble and quick as natural fullbacks. If we really want pacy fullbacks we should buy them, but they not gonna be as good in the air

 

[drippin]

There’s not enough room on the pitch for top speed to matter much if your acceleration is slow. Because even if you’re in a long-ish foot race catching up with a winger, your lack of acceleration means that you have too much catching up to do by the time you reach your top speed. And it’s not like the opposition is a slouch in terms of their top speed to let you catch up.

There’s not enough ground for it to matter much, unless you are chasing a winger like Trossard who seems to have good acceleration but horrendous top speed / sprint speed.

Is this why Arteta has preferred CB's in his whole defence, who are fast enough even though they are tall? There is a clear pattern with players like Gabriel, Saliba, White, Timber, Calafiori, Tomiyasu and even Kiwior. None of them is "very very slow".

Zinchenko was a cheap enough buy at a time when Arteta was just building the squad (and reputation to attract the best players). He always had to be covered by another player, which limits the whole team play. Plus with his injuries he is even slower than before.

Zinchenko is being replaced as fast as possible, with players who have much better top speed along with otherwise being more complete players.

It's obvious Arteta rates top speed especially for defenders for his high line, but somehow AM downplays this aspect like it doesn't matter at all? I guess it's AM 101.

Btw. is Calafiori's acceleration even "very very slow"? I don't think so. Take into account that he just came back from a niggle, has played too much for what he should at this point, so likely takes those spurts and turns carefully at this point.

Zinchenko's top speed at Euros was 30 km/h, so Calafiori clocked 1,5 km/h better during those games.

Oleksandr Zinchenko | Ukraine | UEFA EURO 2024

Visit UEFA.com for all the latest EURO 2024 stats on Oleksandr Zinchenko, including goals, pass completion, top speed and more!

www.uefa.com

 

[Red London]

Is this why Arteta has preferred CB's in his whole defence, who are fast enough even though they are tall? There is a clear pattern with players like Gabriel, Saliba, White, Timber, Calafiori, Tomiyasu and even Kiwior. None of them is "very very slow".

Zinchenko was a cheap enough buy at a time when Arteta was just building the squad (and reputation to attract the best players). He always had to be covered by another player, which limits the whole team play. Plus with his injuries he is even slower than before.

Zinchenko is being replaced as fast as possible, with players who have much better top speed along with otherwise being more complete players.

It's obvious Arteta rates top speed especially for defenders for his high line, but somehow AM downplays this aspect like it doesn't matter at all? I guess it's AM 101.

Btw. is Calafiori's acceleration even "very very slow"? I don't think so. Take into account that he just came back from a niggle, has played too much for what he should at this point, so likely takes those spurts and turns carefully at this point.

Zinchenko's top speed at Euros was 30 km/h, so Calafiori clocked 1,5 km/h better during those games.

Oleksandr Zinchenko | Ukraine | UEFA EURO 2024

Visit UEFA.com for all the latest EURO 2024 stats on Oleksandr Zinchenko, including goals, pass completion, top speed and more!

www.uefa.com

You’re discounting the other stuff I said and the wider context then substituting your own reality again. I wasn’t even responding to whatever point you’ve been trying to make here.

If you were to take my entire point, there would be much more info and stats that need to be provided than just talking about top speeds. There’s a players acceleration in combination with their top speed, there is how long it takes the player to get to top speed, and how fast players are over medium lengths even. It’s not as simple as the way you are making it out, just showing players’ top speeds lol. Some of our defenders may have good top speeds but also good acceleration.

Really not bothered to get into one with you tbh, waste of time.

 

[drippin]

You’re discounting the other stuff I said and the wider context then substituting your own reality again. I wasn’t even responding to whatever point you’ve been trying to make here.

If you were to take my entire point, there would be much more info and stats that need to be provided than just talking about top speeds. There’s a players acceleration in combination with their top speed, there is how long it takes the player to get to top speed, and how fast players are over medium lengths even. It’s not as simple as the way you are making it out, just showing players’ top speeds lol. Some of our defenders may have good top speeds but also good acceleration.

Really not bothered to get into one with you tbh, waste of time.

My answer was to all people who talked about top speed not mattering in last pages after the argument, but answered to yours because you're usually quite sensible. But apparently you are not.

Why are you guys acting like I don't know that top speed is not everything? What a silly assumption, but this is AM.

Why don't you answer to my point about Arteta clearly buying fast & tall defenders for his high line? The next step was replacing Zinchenko, which should have happened last season already with Timber.

I know the answer (so you can stay quiet which seems your preference) because you guys would have to admit that top speed matters for a high line. And especially for Arteta as we have the evidence.

 

[Rasmi]

My answer was to all people who talked about top speed not mattering in last pages after the argument, but answered to yours because you're usually quite sensible. But apparently you are not.

Why are you guys acting like I don't know that top speed is not everything? What a silly assumption, but this is AM.

Why don't you answer to my point about Arteta clearly buying fast & tall defenders for his high line? The next step was replacing Zinchenko, which should have happened last season already with Timber.

I know the answer (so you can stay quiet which seems your preference) because you guys would have to admit that top speed matters for a high line. And especially for Arteta as we have the evidence.

Kiwior is not fast and Calafiore has ok speed. Wouldn’t call him fast either

 

[Blankety Blank]

Cmon don’t i give you college professor you want to F vibes?

Similar vibes to this guy I reckon bro

Professor hits back after he was accused of making seedy remark

Bruce Blumberg was briefly suspended with pay during an investigation into allegations made against him by a woman in his biology lab.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[PrinzPoldi]

Bar Walker (not this season), City's defense are not that quick and fast in terms of speed.

 

[Red London]

Why don't you answer to my point about Arteta clearly buying fast & tall defenders for his high line? The next step was replacing Zinchenko, which should have happened last season already with Timber.

When did I say that Arteta has avoided buying tall and fast players?

Are all these tall and fast players really slow with their acceleration?…which is the only scenario which proves your point and disproves mine.

 

[Rasmi]

Bar Walker (not this season), City's defense are not that quick and fast in terms of speed.

Akanji is very quick. Quicker than both of our CBs