Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has joked that fans would have revolted against him for not playing William Saliba. However, he has said that there was trust between him and Saliba.
He has also said that loan spells did benefit the development of Saliba as a defender. However, they will not loan him or sell him at any price.
ARSENAL DEFENDER IS STARTING TO SHOW HIS TRUE WORTH FOR THE TEAM
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta made the decision to start William Saliba against Crystal Palace in the first game of this season. This was also his first match for the Gunners. It is also because the Gunners kept loaning him out to France for 3 seasons. Hence, many also thought that Mikel Arteta would never integrate him in the team.
However, since the Palace game, William Saliba has never looked back. The French defender is also now the star player for the Arsenal team. Hence, it looks like Mikel Arteta made the right decision in giving Saliba time to integrate with the club. Therefore, the club are also in positive talks to extend the contract of Saliba before the end of this season.
MIKEL ARTETA WANTED TO ANALYSE WILLIAM SALIBA BEFORE MAKING HIM AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE TEAM
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has joked that the fans would have revolted against him for not giving a chance to Saliba this season. However, he has also said that he wanted to make sure that Saliba was ready to play for the team and also play in the Premier League. The brilliant ability of Saliba has also helped him form a formidable partnership with Gabriel Magalhaes.
Mikel Arteta further speaking on the Arsenal defender further said, “I was 100 per cent sure that I was going to have a lot of pressure externally to give him the opportunity,. “However, after that it was the perfect storm and a beautiful relationship started to build. “He had an immediate impact… the first two training sessions that we looked at him and thought: ‘There’s huge potential here.”
Hence, it is clear that Arsenal also consider William Saliba a very important part of the future. The French defender is also feeling happy at the club. Therefore, the Gunners should not have a problem in extending the contract of Saliba.
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