Yesterday, William Saliba sat down for an interview with Arsenal, after spending the 2021/22 season on loan at Marseille.
It was something of a catchup with the 21-year-old, who has become a France international during his time away from the Emirates Stadium, where he has made excellent progress.
Now, Saliba has revealed something which we believe will make Arsenal fans very pleased.
What’s the story?
Well, the Frenchman told Arsenal’s official website that he has been studying how those he has never met at London Colney play, so it is easier for him to adapt upon his return to north London.
Saliba said: “When I was on loan I watched every single game, because when I was there some players weren’t. I watched the games to see how they played, so when I was back it would be easier to play with those I hadn’t met before.”
Now, that is very sensible from the £27m man.
Of course, Mikel Arteta and Edu have signed plenty of new faces while Saliba has been out on loan, so the squad has a very different look to it from when the centre-back first arrived under Unai Emery.
Therefore, it is wise of the defender to do his research, and we presume Arteta will be very, very happy to hear these comments, seeing as the Spaniard is something of a perfectionist himself.
How Arsenal could use William Saliba
Last season, Ben White struck up a decent partnership with Gabriel Magalhães, so it will be interesting to see where Arteta plans to use the French prodigy.
Over in France, Jorge Sampaoli – who has now left Marseille – handed Saliba 51 appearances in all competitions, with all of them coming at centre-back except for two outings at right-back.
Now, Saliba is obviously a natural centre-back, so we personally wouldn’t want to see him on the right of defence.
However, we also can’t see how Arteta manages to keep everybody happy, as he would then need to find somewhere to use Takehiro Tomiyasu if he puts Saliba at right-back.
It is a selection headache in every sense of the phrase – fortunately, we don’t have to make the final decision.
In other news, ‘Maybe’: Fabrizio Romano hints Arsenal could move for 24-year-old ‘at the end of the window
https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2022/07/16/william-saliba-has-just-admitted-something-that-will-delight-arsenal-fans-our-view/
