Arsenal will face Dundalk in their final Europa League group stage game this evening. In the press conference leading up to the game, like in many recent interviews, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was questioned about the future of William Saliba.
The 19-year old central defender joined the club in the summer after spending a year on loan at former club St Etienne. The Gunners spent £30 Million in the deal to acquire the French starlet who is described as one of the most exciting defensive talents from France since Raphael Varane.
However, it has not all gone to plan for Saliba who has yet to make an appearance for the Gunners, despite being included in the Premier League squad due to the under-21 rule. He was left out of the Europa League squad with many in the club believing he would again go out on loan. Unfortunately, no such deal was completed. Since he has struggled to settle in his new North London home.
Arteta claims however that the club have been discussing Saliba’s future and all will be decided in the coming weeks.
Saliba Future to Be ‘Decided Soon’ Says Arteta
Saliba Struggling to Settle in
It has not been an easy year for the youngster. He spent a large part of last season out with injury and the league season in France was cut short as a result of the pandemic. This led to him being sidelined and away from the game for a prolonged period. As a result, when he returned to Arsenal in the summer, he struggled with his fitness. The arrival of Gabriel Magalhaes also meant he slipped further down the pecking order.
Saliba has featured this season for the Arsenal-U23s and has impressed. Yet, he is still waiting for his reward in terms of playing for the first team, despite training with them weekly.
The Latest From Arteta
Many at Arsenal are rightly excited by Saliba, and Arteta reiterated that there is a future for him at the club. The club had planned a pathway for him but there has been a ‘lot of things that happened to him in his personal life and professionally as well’ according to Arteta.
The Arsenal boss said: “To be fair, he’s made massive improvements in the last few months and it’s been a really tricky situation for him.”
When questioned about a possible loan move, the Spaniard added: “It’s something that we are discussing at the moment, the best thing for us to do. It will be decided soon.”
In the next few weeks, we will see what is next for Saliba. Reports suggest he may go out on another loan with a lot of interest in him from France. However, with Arsenal’s defensive struggles there may soon be an opportunity for him to make a mark and become apart of Arteta’s current plans.
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