Speaking in his official unveiling press conference, William Saliba has responded to a question asking whether or not he’d be open to staying at Nice beyond his official six-month loan spell after joining from Arsenal.
In typical footballer fashion, Saliba didn’t give a concrete answer to this question, but interestingly, he didn’t rule out the idea of staying at Nice.
“I have signed a 6 month contract, after these 6 months we will see what happens. But for now I have signed for 6 months, I am going to give my all, and then we will see.”
We’re not going to dig too deep into this answer and claim that he’s sending a cryptic message about not wanting to return to Arsenal.
The reality is that this is probably the most conservative answer Saliba could have given, he doesn’t upset the Arsenal fanbase and he keeps his new Nice teammates onside as well.
Whether or not he does return to Arsenal remains to be seen, but when you consider what Edu has said about him, we would be shocked if he departed the London club on a permanent basis without even playing a game.
David Ornstein has also claimed that Saliba remains highly-rated at Arsenal, so it’s fair to say that a permanent move to Nice in the summer is unlikely.
However, considering his limited opportunities this season, one would imagine an extension of his loan may not be completely off the cards, but as ever, we’ll have to wait and see on that front.
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