Riccardo Calafiori: The Italian Stallion

[Dokaka]

Are you @Sulosky in disguise?

I don't even think he's attractive but I'm not really qualified to judge He's just got that face you dread spotting in a group selfie your girlfriend took when she's out with her friends.

 

[Bagels]

This is actually false.


He has only played exclusively as a center back for one season in his entire Club career including academy and first team
Football.

He has gone back and forth.

At Roma he was a LB, when he went to Basel he went as a LB, but ultimately moved to CB where he performed the best. This got him his big move to Bologna, as a CB. This is also the position he plays for Italy. Now at Arsenal, he is back to LB.

He is underrated as a defender, but as a CB in a back 4, a lot of his talents are wasted. It’s why he has always looked fantastic in a back 5 as a CB, where he can have a bit more freedom.

Guy is just a freak, really. If you played him up top I’m convinced he’d bang goals

 

[Sulosky]

Are you @Sulosky in disguise?

Honestly, I’ve been behaving myself these past few months since I stopped drinking.

 

[Dokaka]

He has gone back and forth.

At Roma he was a LB, when he went to Basel he went as a LB, but ultimately moved to CB where he performed the best. This got him his big move to Bologna, as a CB. This is also the position he plays for Italy. Now at Arsenal, he is back to LB.

He is underrated as a defender, but as a CB in a back 4, a lot of his talents are wasted. It’s why he has always looked fantastic in a back 5 as a CB, where he can have a bit more freedom.

Guy is just a freak, really. If you played him up top I’m convinced he’d bang goals

Yeah he's just one of those rare breeds of footballers where he's somehow defensively good enough to play CB at the very highest level, but he still has the flair and technical quality to play pretty much anywhere on the pitch.

Reminds me a bit of Yaya Toure, honestly. Not saying they're equals or anything but he had that same ability of playing CB at the top level yet also be tremendously impactful when deployed further up the pitch.

 

[Bagels]

Yeah he's just one of those rare breeds of footballers where he's somehow defensively good enough to play CB at the very highest level, but he still has the flair and technical quality to play pretty much anywhere on the pitch.

Reminds me a bit of Yaya Toure, honestly. Not saying they're equals or anything but he had that same ability of playing CB at the top level yet also be tremendously impactful when deployed further up the pitch.

Yeah, and his positional decision-making is off the charts. Somehow always knows where to be to cause the most chaos. He just seems to see the game differently than everyone else.

It reminds me a bit of Beckenbauer - not comparing the skillsets or talent levels - but in that they both did something with their positions that no one previously had ever thought of doing.

 

[SuperGoon]

I think I'm a bit gay.

 

[Make]

If Cala can stay fit for the rest of the season (finally) we can have the best LB in the world. What a player and what a guy.

 

[ash_rasul]

immence today, love the all the weird posisitions pops up in... esp RW lol, but did get caught out baldly once or twice, but thankfully Gabi and Tzolis covered him.

How noble of them to come to his rescue and cover up his exposed hair follicles!

 

[Vinci]

I think I'm a bit gay.

Yes, you are.

But who doesn't want to mount an Italian stallion?

 

[Bloodbather]

What myth? He only struggled at times his first season here. And usually against smaller and quicker players. He has always been solid defensively.

You clearly don't remember the BS the likes of @OnlyOne were pushing about him for a long time. "Too slow", "not a LB", etc. Even he has come around by the looks of it, though.

 

[Tomb Bomadil]

If Cala can stay fit for the rest of the season (finally) we can have the best LB in the world. What a player and what a guy.

Yep but thats the problem. He is so injury prone.

Please take care of him. With Hincapie there is no excuse not to rest him.

 

[OnlyOne]

You clearly don't remember the BS the likes of @OnlyOne were pushing about him for a long time. "Too slow", "not a LB", etc. Even he has come around by the looks of it, though.

It wasn’t bullshit, defensively he has his issues and often he was outshone by MLS’s performances at LB.

Thats even before we get into his horrendous injury record. His performances always improve the more he plays but he can never string it together, gets injured and starts again.

I’m very pleased with his performances so far this season.

 

[Bloodbather]

It wasn’t bullshit, defensively he has his issues and often he was outshone by MLS’s performances at LB.

Thats even before we get into his horrendous injury record. His performances always improve the more he plays but he can never string it together, gets injured and starts again.

I’m very pleased with his performances so far this season.

The injury argument is fair, but the defensive woes and not a LB thing were always misguided as I said back then.

You basically saw him get done by Savinho and Dibling one time each in his first few games and concluded he was slow and crap defensively and didn't change your mind even though he didn't have any noticeable problems afterwards.

And the not a LB thing was always factually wrong.

 

[OnlyOne]

The injury argument is fair, but the defensive woes and not a LB thing were always misguided as I said back then.

You basically saw him get done by Savinho and Dibling one time each and concluded he was slow and crap defensively and didn't change your mind even though he didn't have any noticeable problems afterwards.

And the not a LB thing was always factually wrong.

He couldn’t keep up with pace at all and it’s still going to be an issue. But he’s not built for that anyway. He’s not quick and defensively he’s struggled. I don’t think this is ground breaking stuff.

 

[Jakarta]

Hope he finally has an injury free season. Arteta do you hear me? Don’t run him to the ground and rotate him heavily with Hincapie.

Btw remember those who were thinking 50/60m from Real Madrid was a good deal this summer? I think @Mitch was the one who in the end said “Cala would be the best CB in La Liga and is a 100m player.” He was spot on!

 

[DuBB]

Yeah he's just one of those rare breeds of footballers where he's somehow defensively good enough to play CB at the very highest level, but he still has the flair and technical quality to play pretty much anywhere on the pitch.

Reminds me a bit of Yaya Toure, honestly. Not saying they're equals or anything but he had that same ability of playing CB at the top level yet also be tremendously impactful when deployed further up the pitch.

Spot on. And I think that's why Arteta has given him the license he has. More than any "inverted" FB we've ever had.

There's a conversation to be had, if he stays fit and has a generally excellent season, that he's a legitimate superstar, "World Class", Balon d'Or type of player.

The only issue is, because of how unique he is, and because there really aren't many or any players who do what he does, that it would be hard to convince or argue for. He's not a standard 6 who runs games like Rodri. He's not a winger who bangs 30 goals. He's not a Haaland like striker. But like them, he absolutely breaks games and breaks systems. On Sky they showed how Pedro Neto had the job of man-marking him all game, and for the Ødegaard goal, Calafiori's movement meant that when Ode scored, Pedro Neto was technically the RCB in a back 3 because of how he had to track Cala, and that splitting of the CBs meant Havertz and Ode could do what they did and make it looks so simple.

Add on to that Cala's technical quality, passing, crossing, touch, movement, decisions, even finishing... With a fully fit season (a stretch), he might have an argument as being in the group along with Rice, Saliba, Gabriel, Raya and Saka. He's legitimately a WC, franchise player. He's just a weirdo LB that we can't explain

But he's one of those players that we'll adore, and twice a season rivals will play us and go "WTF is that?!", forget about him and act ask if he doesn't exist or as if some random LB who spams crosses and hugs the touchline is better than him.

Which I'm fine with.

 

[Vinci]

He is the definition of Total Football, and with that he is an anomaly in modern football and why he is so hard to stop.

There is no tactic to neutralize him, man-marking, zonal-marking, it all won't work.

 

[remains]

Please stay fit.

 

[Jason Jace]

He has gone back and forth.

At Roma he was a LB, when he went to Basel he went as a LB, but ultimately moved to CB where he performed the best. This got him his big move to Bologna, as a CB. This is also the position he plays for Italy. Now at Arsenal, he is back to LB.

He is underrated as a defender, but as a CB in a back 4, a lot of his talents are wasted. It’s why he has always looked fantastic in a back 5 as a CB, where he can have a bit more freedom.

Guy is just a freak, really. If you played him up top I’m convinced he’d bang goals

He was at Basel for a season where he played 38 games. Out of that 38games, he started only 11 at CB which means he played 27 at Leftback.

For bologna he only spent one season there where he played exclusively as a center back, which is the only full season his entire career he has played as CB.

Can we really call a player that was brought up as a left back and has played majority of his career as a left back a converted CB?

If anything he was a leftback converted to play CB because of his build and he’s now back in his natural position and thriving.

 

[tap-in]

Hope he finally has an injury free season. Arteta do you hear me? Don’t run him to the ground and rotate him heavily with Hincapie.

Btw remember those who were thinking 50/60m from Real Madrid was a good deal this summer? I think @Mitch was the one who in the end said “Cala would be the best CB in La Liga and is a 100m player.” He was spot on!

I love this guy, and still so young. Rotation/rest is vital for all, We have the players to do it in midfield and attack, so hopefully Arteta is sensible. When Saliba and Timber back, others can rest. Obviously for LB we have cover now in Hincape.