Chris Wheatley has adamantly insisted that Arsenal defender William Saliba is not available by any means this summer.
The Gunners moved to seal the centre-back’s signature in the summer of 2019 for a substantial fee, but he is yet to be given his debut in the senior side.
Saliba was initially allowed to stay with St Etienne after an agreement was made to bring him to North London, but after a limited pre-season last summer, manager Mikel Arteta decided he wasn’t ready.
The 20 year-old was an unused substitute on two occasions, once in the League Cup and once in the Community Shield, but that is as close as he got to making his senior debut, before leaving to return to France on loan in January.
Saliba has again impressed in a key role, this time for Nice, and expectation is that he will again return to Arsenal before a decision is made on his squad position in North London.
Chris Wheatley, who regularly shares breaking news for Football.London, insists that Saliba ‘won’t be leaving’ Arsenal this summer, where he will get his opportunity under the Spanish boss.
Will Saliba quickly adapt to the vigours of the Premier League? Will David Luiz’s departure open the door for Saliba to slot straight into the first-team?
Patrick