Mikel Arteta has helped develop some young player at Arsenal, but William Saliba’s situation remains a concern.
Kieran Tierney, Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli look set to be important players for Arsenal moving forward, and have been key to the upturn in form.
Some would have expected Saliba to play a part in this youth movement, but his time with the Gunners has been a major frustration.
The French defender was signed for a huge £27million in the summer of 2019, having shown early promise with Saint-Etienne.
Having been loaned back to the Ligue 1 side, Saliba was hoping to start his Arsenal career – but he was left out of Arteta’s squads and failed to make a single first-team appearance this term.
The 19-year-old has been loaned out again, returning to France with OGC Nice, where he has just won their Player of the Month award.
Saliba will be hoping to convince Arteta, and has now told RMC Sport that the Arsenal boss judged him on just two-and-a-half matches with the Gunners.
Saliba claims Arteta told him that he wasn’t ready to play for Arsenal, but is happier now he is playing for Nice until the summer – and Arteta will then have a huge decision to make.
“It is clear that so much has changed in the last year,” said Saliba. “When I saw that the coach changed a lot changed for me too. In this year there has been a lot of change. He judged me on two-and-a-half matches. I would have liked for him to play me more. But he told me I wasn’t ready.”
“I was waiting for him to give me a chance, but football is like that. When I initially came to Arsenal the league looked very good so I showed up to training and wanted to train on my own to show the coach I was ready. I am happy now, I want to play for Nice. The idea when you’re part of a team is a better feeling for me,” he added.
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