The young Italian is considered one of the finest up-and-coming talents in Italy and is regarded as a similar player to the Milan and Azzurri legend Alessandro Nesta, in how they play.

Whilst Nesta was a right-footed centre-back and Alessio Romagnoli is left-footed, parallels have been drawn in how Romagnoli is an elegant tackler for someone so young, as well as being an agressive man-marker and extremely composed with the ball at his feet.

Being comfortable with the ball is now a skill required for every position in the modern European game, with clearances now deemed as wasteful losses of possession at the top clubs; goal keepers and defenders are now expected to be able to play out from the back and keep the ball.

When it is considered that Arsenal are a team famed for their ability to maintain the ball and circulate possession effectively, then the reports linking Romagnoli with a switch from Rome to London have a degree of believability; they make sense in football terms.

With Arsenal not in any danger of going against Premier League home-grown rules, there is less of a demand for the North London side to purchase players with the home-grown premium like Manchester City did when they bought Raheem Sterling from Liverpool for £49 million, or Chelsea are reportedly close to doing with John Stones - an estimated £30 million purchase from Everton.

As such, the focus can turn to plucking talented players from the continent, with the Gunners also reported to be interested in Daniele Rugani, going as far as reportedly bidding for the Juventus player, an Italy u-21 teammate of Romagnoli’s.

What position does he play?

Romagnoli is primarily a centre-back and that is the position he played for Sampdoria in the 2014-2015 season. However, due to his ability on the ball and general comfort when in possession, the Italian can also be deployed at left-back, where he has played on occasion for Roma.

How did his 2014-2015 season go?

A product from Roma’s academy, Romagnoli made his debut as a fresh-faced 17 year old under head coach, Zdenek Zeman. Under current Roma coach, Rudi Garcia, Romagnoli played a handful of games in the second half of the 2013-2014 season and was rewarded for his displays and indeed the potential he clearly possesses with a new four-year contract on the 31st May 2014.

It was decided by those high up in Roma’s hierarchy that Romagnoli would join Genoese club Sampdoria on loan for the 2014-2015 season. Under Sinisa Mihajlovic, Sampdoria finished 7th place in Serie A, which earned Mihajlovic the Milan job, filling the vacancy left by Inzaghi.

Romagnoli was key to the side which exceeded expectations, making 30 appearances in total, with 28 starts, giving the young Italian defender a total of 2534 minutes.

Within those matches, Romagnoli contributed offensively with two goals and two assists, whilst defensively Romagnoli earned eight clean sheets in matches, where he played 90 minutes as well as accumulating eight yellow cards.

Luigi Di Biagio picked Romagnoli in Italy’s u-21 squad for the Summer Championships in the Czech Republic and the Roma defender played in two of Italy’s three matches as the Azzurrini crashed out in the group stages. Of the two matches Romagnoli played in, one clean sheet was kept, which came against eventual finalists Portugal in a 0-0 draw. The other match was a comfortable 3-1 victory against England.

How much would he cost?

Having acknowledged the potential Romagnoli has, Roma have slapped a £21 million fee on his head as the price they're willing to sell at. However, Gazzetta dello Sport have claimed that Arsenal are reportedly in talks to negotiate the fee down to around £15 million.

Is he needed by Arsenal?

The Gunners have three recognised central defenders in their squad with Laurent Koscielny, German Per Mertesacker and January signing Gabriel.

Along with these three out-and-out centre-backs, Monreal, a natural left-back, has deputised as centre-back due to injuries to others - as has Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers. Whilst Chambers has played the majority of his games at right-back, both for Southampton and Arsenal, Wenger sees the Englishman as a centre-back, where his height and tackling ability will allow for him to impress.

However, Romagnoli would present a definite option for the position of centre-back due to the fact it is his natural position. Furthermore, as Mertesacker is now 30, it may be time to phase the giant German out of the side in favour of some talented youth.

Do Arsenal have competition for him?

Milan are reported to have tabled three bids for Romagnoli which have all been turned down by Roma. In addition, with reports in Italy suggesting the Roma are going to buy or loan Egyptian winger Mohamed Salah, Chelsea are allegedly going to use Roma’s interest in their player to get Romagnoli in return.

What is sure is that Romagnoli is one of the most coveted young defenders in Europe and, if Wenger does want him, he should move fast.

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About the author
Indrit Berisha
Love football, love Chelsea. Will talk about anything, from any player to any team. Enjoy playing the sport, enjoy watching it, enjoy writing about it.