Arsenal signed William Saliba last summer but is currently on loan and will link up with the Gunners at the end of the season.
Arsenal have got a “great player” on their books in William Saliba, according to Mathieu Debuchy (Official Ligue 1 podcast).
The Gunners beat Tottenham Hotspur to the signing of the 18-year-old centre-half in the summer in a £27million deal from Saint-Etienne (BBC Sport).
However, Arsenal had to loan Saliba back to the Ligue 1 club for the entirety of the 2019-20 season as part of the deal.
Saliba has missed a large part of the campaign through injury but impressed on his return against Monaco last week.
Debuchy, formerly of Arsenal but currently a teammate of Saliba at Saint-Etienne, is confident he will thrive when he eventually begins his Premier League career.
“He’s a great player,” Debuchy told the official Ligue 1 podcast. “I’m so happy for him to play next season for a big club like Arsenal.
“He improves every game and I think he is a great player. He’s strong with good technique. He’s quick. I think he has a lot of quality to play at Arsenal.”
Saliba is due to return to Arsenal at the end of the season, and according to Football London, is set to be a vital part of Mikel Arteta’s future plans.
His former coach Fabio Frasconi has spoken highly of him, claiming he plays “like a senator” and “has an incredible mentality”.
Frasconi told Eurosport, as quoted by talkSPORT: “What I like, is that even though he signed for Arsenal this summer, even though he is earning a lot of money, even though he is regularly called up to play for France, he has never changed and that is a sign of enormous maturity.
“Look at him, after the derby: he’s the one who leads the atmosphere, who leads the victory cry. He plays like he is trying to build a long-term career with St Étienne despite the fact that he’s joining the Gunners at the end of the year. He has an incredible mentality.”
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