Arsenal Star Proves He Can Be Arteta’s Shock Striker as Gunners Smash PSV 7-1

Arsenal made a statement in the Champions League on Tuesday night, demolishing PSV Eindhoven 7-1 to take an emphatic lead over their Dutch opponents before the second leg of their round of 16 clash. It was a scintillating performance from the Gunners and a number of players shone throughout.

The likes of Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino and Ethan Nwaneri impressed, with the latter making history and becoming one of the youngest goalscorers in Champions League history. They weren’t the only ones to capture the attention of supporters, though, and after Riccardo Calafiori’s performance, Arsenal fans want to see the defender given more opportunities up front.

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Calafiori’s Performance Against PSV

He came off the bench and shone

Despite starting the game on the bench, Calafiori’s number was called earlier than expected and he replaced Myles Lewis-Skelly in the first half of the Champions League fixture. He made the most of his opportunity as well, tormenting PSV throughout the game. Despite being a defender, he excelled going forward against the Dutch club.

The Italian finished the game with a key pass, a goal, an assist, nine forward passes and an 8.3 SofaScore rating under his belt. It was an excellent showing and demonstrated how effective he could be in the final third of the pitch. Considering the Gunners’ recent issues up front, with injuries to key players such as Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus, they could do with reinforcements in the attack and Calafiori’s performance proves he could be the man for the job.

The Gunners supporters believe he’s up to the task as well.

Arsenal Fans Want Calafiori Up Front

They’re encouraged by his performance

Arsenal fans were very encouraged by what they saw from their Italian full-back and many have taken to social media to address his performance and call for him to play more often in a forward role. One supporter jumped on X (Twitter) and said: “Calafiori needs a crack at left 8/up front I’m not even joking here.” A second fan shared that sentiment, posting: “Lowkey why don’t we play him striker.”

While it was already an encouraging display from Calafiori, his goal to close out the game was the icing on the cake and it had supporters gushing online. One stated: “That’ll be why Arteta put Calafiori up front (at times) against Nottingham Forest. That’s a brilliant striker’s goal. The timing of the run, the weight of the finish. Wild player,” while another simply said: “Sorry Calafiori CF needs to happen. That was a proper run and weak foot finish.”

Finally, another fan compared the star favorably to one of Arsenal’s actual forwards and claimed he’d do a better job, posting: “Calafiori’s more dangerous than Sterling in the final 3rd lol what a finish.” Having impressed in a more forward role against Nottingham Forest as well, it might be time to give him a proper opportunity up front, Arteta.

All statistics courtesy of SofaScore and accurate as of 04/03/2025