Arsenal star breaks his silence after suffering bizarre injury for national team ahead of the North London derby
Arsenal star Riccardo Calafiori has reacted on social media after suffering a bizarre injury in Italy's big win over France.
Calafiori started Italy's stunning 3-1 victory against France on Friday.
He delivered a brilliant showing at the back, having starred at this summer's Euro 2024 - unlike his club colleague William Saliba.
But his latest international outing was cut short following an unusual collision with Ousmane Dembele.
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Alessandro Bastoni produced a crunching tackle on Dembele, who went flying before rolling onto the ground.
As he landed, however, the winger caught Calafiori's calf with his boot, studs first.
The Arsenal defender had no involvement in the sequence but found himself on the ground, clutching his leg in agony.
His teammates called for medical attention as the 22-year-old tried to power through before being replaced five minutes later.
The Moment Dembele Injured Calafiori 💔💔💔 pic.twitter.com/OFH3JJeCoF
— GEEDOLZ ✉️ (@geedolz124) September 6, 2024
It's a bitter blow for Mikel Arteta as he looks ahead to next weekend's huge North London derby against Tottenham.
After the game, the Italian defender took to social media to reflect on his team's showing.
Accompanied with pictures of himself in action, he wrote: "What a performance, what a night!"
Speaking after the result, Italy boss Luciano Spalletti hopes to have him back for their next game.
"We need to assess Riccardo, but with our staff, we’ve a good chance to have him back with us for the next game," he said.
Calafiori, who joined the Emirates outfit for £42 million this summer, has yet to start for his new side since his switch from Bologna.
But he has made two substitute appearances.
After acquiring his services, Arteta said: "Riccardo is a big personality and character, with specific skills which will make us stronger as we push to win major trophies.
"He has already shown great development in recent seasons with his performances for both Bologna and Italy, with his progression and development in the past year being really impressive."
Nasir Jabbar