Riccardo Calafiori can't wait to welcome back Bukayo Saka into the Arsenal fold
Riccardo Calafiori is backing Bukayo Saka to breathe new life into Arsenal's season - but first they must take care of business against Chelsea.
The Italian defender, who helped the Gunners hit PSV for nine goals across two legs in the Champions League last 16 after netting in the record-breaking 7-1 rout in Eindhoven, is relishing the return of Mikel Arteta's superstar winger.
While there is reluctance to rush Saka's comeback following hamstring surgery in December, he's expected to be back on the training pitch after the international break and there is cautious optimism he could be fit for next month's heavyweight quarter-final clash against Real Madrid.
Calafiori, who was eyed by Los Blancos last summer but eventually deemed too expensive, said: "Everyone will be happy if he comes back, he's a top player and he will make the difference for sure.
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"You can see when he's on the pitch that he makes a big difference, he's an important player for us, he's a top guy as well so I wish he can play for us.
"He's going to do everything to come back for this big game but I'm not even thinking of Real Madrid right now, I'm thinking about Chelsea and then the national team, then we'll see."
The 22-year-old sees no reason why Arsenal can't go the distance in Europe, explaining: "Now we know the result, we are so happy to play this quarter-final and we want to go through.
"We just focus game by game but we are pretty confident of course. If you arrive here, it means you can win - so why not?"
Bukayo Saka is stepping up his return to fitness, though Arsenal are reluctant to rush his comeback
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Image:
Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
While Arsenal have spent the crux of the Premier League campaign hunting down early-season pace-setters Liverpool, they are now looking over their shoulder as defeat to Chelsea would see the gap between the two sides shrink to just three points.
The omens certainly look favourable; Cole Palmer is without a goal or assist in his past seven top-flight matches while Arsenal have lost just once in their last 11 meetings with the Blues in all competitions.
Calafiori continued: "I think it's a big game but we just focus on ourselves, we don't want to think about what's behind us, we're just focusing on us. He's [Palmer] a good player, maybe it's not the best moment for him.
"But we played a good game against PSV, the worst thing we could have done is underestimate the match but we didn't. This weekend is going to be tough, it's an important one."
Arsenal booked their place in the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday after seeing off PSV
Calafiori is no stranger to pressure and big expectations. In 2021, he was dubbed one of the 50 most promising youngsters in Europe by UEFA.
Now he plans to utilise his experience to help Myles Lewis-Skelly navigate similar hype after his fellow left-back earned his first England call-up on Friday when he was named in Thomas Tuchel's squad to face Albania and Latvia, respectively.
Calafiori said of his team-mate: "Myles is another top player for me, he's just 18 but you can see on the pitch he seems like he's 30 years old.
"Right now, I'm only 22, nearly 23 but I realise how young I was when I was just 18 and already playing for Roma in the Europa League.
"He just needs to think that he has a long career ahead, he's a top guy and I think he can be really, really good."
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