Originally Posted by
Steveo
Sumptuous pass into the net at the death.
Class
The classic stepping-into-midfield assist from Califiori as well -
Originally Posted by
Insidious
Well, given the current over-inflation of the market and the "potential" tax, I don't think that is an extortionate fee for such a promising player.
He has partnered Bastoni in the Euro there and allegedly not looked at all out of place - impressive given it would have been his 3rd (?) cap for his country.
Francesco Acerbi is unavailable for the Euro and Scalvini tore his ACL at the end of the season with Atalanta so the stars have aligned for him somewhat in terms of getting his name out there.
Must also be said he has the "look" - it doesn't matter to us of course from a quality and playing perspective, but a floppy-haired, hair-band wearing, cool-as-a-Cucumber Italian is a marketing dream and will (sadly, I grant) be a consideration for anyone going in for him.
Bayern Munich and Man City I think were linked before the season had even ended. The player himself has modelled himself on John Stones in terms of play-style in the (recent) past.
5 assists and a goal in Series A as well - if people liked Matip stepping into midfield, then Califiori should make them very happy. Not to mention he was a full-back as well, so we'd have that versatility for any sort of hybrid role if we had 3 at the back in a possession phase.
Let's say it is £59m. Having Quansah (already at the club) and Califiori simultaneously, with a couple more seasons of learning/tutelage from Van Dijk to mould them and a head coach with a rep for developing young players could (in time) make £59m seem a paltry amount of money if we end up with a centre-back pairing that could last a
decade, complimented by Konate's presence in the squad.
If his development continues and we ensure we sort the contracts of a couple of key players, whilst not neglecting to bolster the DM and right-sided forward areas, then the blend of talent and age profile in the squad would look pretty excellent.
Thankfully, if we don't get him, the World is full of thousands of football players - indeed, Bologna bought Califiori for a miniscule £3.4m from Basel - exactly the sort of business we should do, but unfortunately the sort of "boring" business that a lot of fans chalk up to penny-pinching.
It's a smidge annoying that Juventus looks a likely destination for him now as he looks a serious, serious prospect.
Your hobbies are rollerblading and you're also a bit of a rat-hound? Steel Wool
Sid knows he's crazy and he likes it. Balinkay
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