French side Marseille are set to open talks with Arsenal over a permanent deal to keep William Saliba beyond his current loan spell.
The defender joined the Gunners from St Etienne in the summer in 2019 but is yet to make his competitive debut for the senior side, and is currently on his third loan away from the club.
Despite our side having failed to give Saliba his chance in north London, he is still believed to be held in high regard, and the belief is that he still remains in the club’s long-term plans. That resolve could well be tested however with Marseille claimed to be ready to discuss a deal to sign him permanently.
The 20 year-old is enjoying a regular first-team role with Les Olympiens this term, and he has previously insisted that regular playing time was a priority of his. With Ben White and Gabriel Magalhaes proving to be a formidable partnership, with a club record for a defender having been splashed on the Englishman this summer, you could be forgiven for believing that Saliba may feel like his opportunities will be hard to come by, and Arsenal themselves may also have similar thinking.
With this in mind, it would hardly be a shock if we was to cash-in on Saliba without him even making his debut at the Emirates, while we also have Dan Ballard firmly impressing on loan also, who will also be hoping for a chance in the near future. Just Arsenal’s Yash Bisht has previously claimed that it would be a mistake to let him leave, but the selling fee could well be invested into other key areas of the team, such as bringing in a new deadly striker into the fold…
Do you believe Saliba could displace White in the pecking order? Should we consider selling while the youngster’s stock is high, especially with the need in the role appearing slim-to-none at present?
Patrick