Mikel Arteta says player Arsenal have ‘missed’ is already showing encouraging signs in pre-season

Add as preferred source on Google

Mikel Arteta has spoken to the media ahead of Arsenal’s pre-season tour of Asia.

The Gunners flew to Singapore for the first leg of the Asia tour, with Arsenal set to face AC Milan at the Singapore National Stadium on Wednesday.

Already, Arteta’s squad looks different to the one that ended the 2024/25 campaign, with exits, arrivals and returns on show.

While the majority of the focus is on Arsenal’s new signings, with Kepa Arrizabalaga, Martin Zubimendi and Christhian Norgaard with the squad, Arteta shared an encouraging update on a different player.

• READ MORE: Arsenal pre-season tour 2025: Destination, confirmed fixtures, tickets, how to watch and more

Mikel Arteta shares early Riccardo Calafiori pre-season verdict

It’s not only the new signings who will be eager to prove themselves in the new season, as some in the Arsenal squad will certainly want to raise the bar from 2024/25.

One player is Riccardo Calafiori, who missed a huge chunk of his debut campaign in North London due to injury.

On top of fitness problems, Calafiori faced competition from Myles Lewis-Skelly, factors that contributed to the Italian making only 11 starts in the Premier League.

It was a lacklustre debut season for the 23-year-old, but that hasn’t dampened his spirits, as Arteta explained in a press conference.

“It’s a big season for him, he looks very, very excited,” Arteta said.

“We know that one of the biggest things we have to achieve this season is availability. It’s true that the main two injuries that he had were on international duty while he was playing with Italy. But these things can happen.”

The Arsenal manager made it clear that he wants more from Calafiori, who is already ‘excited’ about what the 2025/26 campaign could have in store for him.

Availability is key for the defender, as Arteta stressed when detailing what the 2024 signing can offer to the team when he is fit.

“Now we want a player that is consistently available and performing at the level that he can do because he brings an energy and predictability to the team that we really are going to need.

“He was certainly missed for a big part of last season. Hopefully, that second season with more understanding and a little bit more luck, which I think he will miss as well, we can see a great version of him.”

Calafiori’s transfer was questioned during his first season at Arsenal, with an improvement on availability desperately needed for both player and club. 

Calafiori’s injury record at Arsenal

Interestingly, there were reservations at Arsenal about signing Calafiori, due to the player’s injury record over his career.

Arteta was firm on his desire to bring the Italian to the Emirates, but so far, the boss has been reminded of why there were some doubts about acquiring the former Bologna ace.

Before joining Arsenal, Calafiori’s injury record was a problem, something that carried over to N5.

Over the 2024/25 calendar, the versatile defender was unavailable for as many as 175 days due to injury, raising questions about his reliability.

When fit, Calafiori has so much to offer the squad, as Arteta explained, emphasising the need for pre-season to go well.