Jose Mourinho is reportedly eyeing a move for Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori as he begins plotting his Real Madrid overhaul.

The Portuguese manager has been identified as the incoming Real Madrid boss and has already set his sights on key transfer targets for the Bernabeu rebuild.

What makes the pursuit particularly striking is that Mourinho himself sanctioned Calafiori’s departure when he was in charge at Roma back in 2022.

Roma offloaded Calafiori to Basel for just £1.5m under Mourinho’s watch, before Arsenal signed the defender in a £42m transfer two years later.

Calafiori has since become a popular figure inside the Arsenal dressing room and recently celebrated the club’s first championship triumph in 22 years.

Mourinho has already moved quickly in the transfer market, securing agreements for Inter Milan’s Denzel Dumfries and Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate ahead of his return.

Konate is set to arrive on a free transfer, while Dumfries carries a £20m release clause, and Mourinho is now chasing further defensive reinforcements.

Calafiori is a versatile operator, capable of playing at left-back or centre-half, and is also a regular fixture in the Italy national team setup.

Arsenal do possess considerable depth in those positions, with Piero Hincapie and Myles Lewis-Skelly among the options, and Calafiori missed out on the Champions League final while managing a fitness concern.

Real Madrid may look to test Arsenal’s willingness to negotiate over Calafiori during the current transfer window, with Mourinho keen to bolster his defensive options.

Mourinho’s second spell at Real Madrid is yet to be officially confirmed, though reports indicate he has signed a three-year deal to return to the Spanish club.

The announcement is expected to follow this weekend’s presidential election at Real Madrid on Sunday, June 7, where current president Florentino Perez faces a challenge from rival candidate Enrique Riquelme.

Perez has already teased a major announcement, telling El Espanyol: “This Thursday I’ll announce my first big signing for next season. Everyone knows my sporting project: having the best players, and carrying on winning.”

On the matter of a new head coach, Perez added: “Soon I’ll announce who Real Madrid’s new coach will be, we’ll have more names before Sunday, don’t worry.”

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