Calafiori calls Arsenal title win 'the best day of my life' and reveals players didn't want Champions League parade

Calafiori: Premier League title 'the best day of my life'

Italy international Riccardo Calafiori says the day Arsenal won the Premier League title was the best of his life, and reveals that some teammates weren't in the mood for the open-top bus parade the day after the Champions League final defeat.

Speaking in an interview with Arsenal's official website, the 24-year-old looked back on some of the highlights of his career. He has just started his third season at the club and, last week, scored his first international goal for Italy and his first home goal for the Gunners.

A title win on his birthday

Becoming a Premier League champion with Arsenal remains the biggest achievement of his career so far. "It's hard to explain, but it was incredibly satisfying and also a great relief for the entire club and the Arsenal family. All the players were together that night, at the training ground, watching Manchester City against Bournemouth," the Italian said.

"And we were all together celebrating. It was just amazing. It's the best day of my life, for sure, because it was also my birthday. It was crazy."

Reluctant parade after Champions League heartbreak

Arsenal reached the Champions League final last season but lost on penalties to Ligue 1 giants PSG. The day after the final, the Gunners joined their fans in North London for an open-top bus parade, even though not everyone in the squad was keen at first.

"Even the parade. It would have been a little complicated, because it was the morning after losing the Champions League final, and some of us were talking on the plane back from Hungary, saying we really didn't want to do it," Calafiori said.

"But then when we saw how many people were there, we freaked out! In the end, it was the right thing to do, because it was still an incredible season for us. You can't let that Champions League final condition you—you have to see the bigger picture, and it was amazing."

An earlier school triumph

Calafiori also recalled winning a school tournament in Rome when he was 13 or 14, while he was already playing for Roma. "I'm still really grateful for this because I've got great memories of it. My team-mates were also my classmates, we had a mixed team with one girl in our side as well, and I don't think we were expected to win it. But we did really well," he said.

Calafiori was also included in Football Italia's Italian TOTW for last week's league rounds across Europe.