Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori has cut short his international duty with Italy, returning to London for assessment on a hip injury, creating significant concern ahead of next weekend's pivotal north London derby against Tottenham.
Injury Disruption for Key Defender
The 23-year-old, who has been a revelation for the Gunners this season, has started every single Premier League game and has been instrumental in the club's strong start to the campaign. However, he has recently been managing this hip problem.
Despite the injury, Calafiori initially joined up with the Italian national team for their crucial UEFA Nations League matches against Moldova and Norway. He travelled for the fixture against Moldova but did not make the matchday squad for their 2-0 victory on Thursday.
Gattuso's Explanation and Arsenal's Response
Italy manager Gennaro Gattuso addressed the situation, stating, 'He tried to be available but he can't force it now.' Following this, and after training separately from the main squad, Calafiori has now departed the camp and returned to Arsenal's London Colney base.
According to reports from journalist Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal are aware of the situation and are not currently anticipating the issue to be a long-term or serious one. This will come as a relief to manager Mikel Arteta, who is already contending with a lengthy injury list.
Club vs Country Tension
This early return follows reports from Italian publication La Repubblica which suggested that Arteta had wanted his defender to remain at home this international break to properly manage the hip issue.
This highlights an ongoing tension, as it is also reported that Gattuso and Italy legend Gianluigi Buffon, now the national team's head of delegation, have been urging players to prioritise international duty, even when not fully fit. This is particularly pressing for Italy, who failed to qualify for the last two World Cups and are likely headed for a play-off spot despite winning six consecutive games.
Arteta will be desperately hoping for a positive diagnosis. Prior to the international break, in a 2-2 draw with Sunderland, Arsenal were missing a host of key players including Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus, and Noni Madueke.
Speaking after that match, Arteta had pointed to the international break as a chance to reset, saying, 'Now we reset with the international break, get the [international] players back nice and healthy, the ones that are not healthy make sure that they get healthy, and we go again.' The fitness of Calafiori will be paramount as Arsenal face a demanding run of fixtures against Bayern Munich, Chelsea, and their arch-rivals Tottenham.
