Marcel Desailly questioned how good William Saliba is and insisted that the Arsenal defender is not yet world-class, which has brought a response from Martin Keown.
Since breaking into the Arsenal team last season, Saliba has been one of the finest defenders in Europe.
Some fans believe that if he had not been injured towards the end of last season, the Gunners could have won the league.
He also played for France in the last World Cup in Qatar despite the abundance of defensive talent in the Les Bleus pool.
Saliba constantly earns praise for his performances for the Gunners, but Desailly suggested he was overrated.
Keown insists he does not agree with the former defender and says Saliba has the attributes of a world-class player.
He said, as quoted by the Daily Mail:
‘I really can’t understand that (Desailly’s comments). I think Saliba has the complete skill set.
‘I think he’s right now one of the best defenders in Europe. He has everything you need. His pace is phenomenal. His power. He reads the situation really well.
‘He has everything you need. He’s aggressive and I think he has everything he needs. I am really surprised by that comment.’
Keown finished by saying: ‘We love having him at Arsenal because he’s physical and has everything you need.’
Just Arsenal Opinion
Saliba is a world-class player and will thrive in any team he plays for. Everyone has their opinion, and Desailly is included, but many football fans will agree that Saliba is one of the best in the world now.
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I think Desailly and Gallas are absolute dicks. I think they have been living in a hole and not this world. Never did like Gallas.
They spoke well of you Reggie 🤣
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I think it was right what Ferdinand said. I doubt that they have watched him that much. Either that or they are saddo’s.
While Saliba maybe a top defender, he may not have quite broken in that small elite group of work class just yet.
Am hoping his four year contract has another year as option built in.
Who cares! There are lots of fools around who say all sorts of daft things about players
Should we expect that famous ex-players like Desailly and Gallas are wise, just because they were once players. Of course not!
Just ignore these fools ,as we ALL know the real truth.
What does ‘world class’ really mean? I think it depends who you ask.
On current form could break into all the top sides in Europe which to me is world-class Once it is arguable for each team then they are world-class imo
Saliba to my mind could slip into all the best sides and look the part in theory
Could Saliba play for City? Yes he can.