To some at Arsenal, William Saliba wasn’t good enough to play for the club, but he is now proving that thinking wrong in the French Ligue 1.
After joining Nice on loan from Arsenal for the rest of this campaign, the Frenchman has been in fine form.
Nice has had a tough season because of the slow start to the campaign that they made, but this second half is shaping up to be a good one for them, and Saliba is part of the reasons why that is happening.
They beat Lens 1-0 in the league this weekend, and the defender was in fine form as they kept a clean sheet.
He made one block, five clearances and completed 43 passes with an accuracy of 89.6%, according to Mirror Football.
His performance didn’t go unnoticed as French news outlet L’Equipe, cited in the same Mirror report, praised him for his commanding showing.
It said of Saliba’s performance: “He guides and instructs the defence, and gives the impression he’s been there a long time.
“He has just arrived but has already shown he is the boss of the defence.”
Saliba has done well since his return to France, but he would need to maintain that level of performance if he wants to get into the Arsenal team on his return in the summer.