Pio Esposito
Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta is pushing the club to sign Inter Milan centre-forward Pio Esposito next summer, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Having come through the ranks at Inter’s academy, Esposito has shown a consistent run of goalscoring form since gaining his first full top-flight campaign with Spezia Calcio last season, where he netted 20 goals in all competitions, including 17 in Serie B, the third-highest tally in the division and the youngest player among the top 25 scorers.
This season, the Italian forward has recorded seven goals and six assists, earning his first senior call-up to the Italian national team in September. Since then, he has found the net three times in five appearances for Gennaro Gattuso’s Gli Azzurri side.
In January, Esposito came on in the 63rd minute for Lautaro Martínez when Arsenal visited the San Siro for the UEFA Champions League group stage clash.
While Arteta may have been delighted by Arsenal’s displays in the 3-1 win to mark their first Champions League win on Italian soil since 2008, it appears the Gunners boss was also delighted by the performance of Esposito, who caused problems for Cristhian Mosquera, prompting him to bring on Gabriel Magalhaes to contend with him.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Arteta quickly reached out to Arsenal’s sporting director, Andrea Berta, regarding Esposito after the game.
Prolific forward
Following the manager’s request, the Italian outlet claims that Berta contacted Inter’s sporting director, Piero Ausilio, to enquire about the possibility of the 20-year-old’s transfer to the Emirates Stadium.
However, the Italian giants rebuffed the Gunners’ interest without hesitation, according to the report, and it’ll be interesting to see if the Premier League table-toppers will return next summer with an offer.
Earlier this season, Inter boss Cristian Chivu waxed lyrical about the youngster after he played a key role in their matchweek four Serie A clash against Sassuolo, which ended in a 2-1 win and ended a run of two consecutive defeats.
Speaking after the match, the former Parma boss said, ‘Despite being so young, he handles the pressure well; he can also handle the physical duel on the pitch and works hard for the team.’
I’m very pleased with how he is doing.’ He also added*, ‘Pio can do a bit of everything; I’m happy for him.’*
With Inter rebuffing Arsenal’s initial approach, the Gunners will need to submit a significant offer well above his £30m Transfermarkt valuation to change their stance.