Per Mertesacker believes William Saliba has proven he deserves a chance to play for Arsenal, and he should be kept at the club this season.
The defender signed for the Gunners in the summer of 2019, but he is yet to kick a ball for them.
Mikel Arteta deemed him not prepared enough to play for his team last season and sent him out on loan to Olympique Marseille.
He proved to be a great addition to their squad and helped them to return to the Champions League.
He also won a league-wide award to prove that he was one of the stars of the competition.
Yet there have been rumours that he might still not be good enough for Arsenal, and the Gunners could send him out on loan again.
Mertesacker thinks he has earned the right to stay and be tested. The German said, as quoted by Metro Sport:
‘What William has done in Marseille is magnificent. So for us to really test him this summer and see what’s best for him.
‘But he has clearly made his mark with his young age with his playing in a major league in Europe and been one of the best players in Europe.
‘So why not use him?’
Just Arsenal Opinion
After hearing about the good work he did at Marseille in the last campaign, most Arsenal fans will be eager to see Saliba in their club’s shirt next season.
The former Nice loanee will also be keen to prove that his performances in Ligue 1 are not a flash in the pan.
He will get his chance to challenge for a first-team spot in preseason, and his performance in it will determine if he will play an important role at the Emirates in this campaign.
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Out of all the comments, rumors, quotes, statements, etc…. this is the one I would actually consider worthwhile.
Mertesacker actually played CB, knows what is needed to play CB in the PL, and is a far better judge than most in deciding if Saliba is deserving to play now.
Not to belittle any one’s opinion, except maybe some journalists, but only a fool would disregard Mertesacker’s opinion on being ready to play CB in the PL.
I couldn’t have said it ant better
I can only agree with you.
Gens definitly UP grading the team
He is
No doubt Saliba is ready to play and able to contribute; the question is, can Arteta get over whatever strop he had with the player and give him a fair chance?
No one knows the answer to that other than the manager, but it will be plain pretty quickly. If Arsenal keep Saliba and he’s not in the team in the first three or four games, we will know Arteta brought him home to pull an Ozil/Aubameyang/Bellerin and bury him on the bench or out of the side so he doesn’t look like an idiot for saying he isn’t ready while he is earning young French player of the year awards enroute to helping Marseilles to earn a place in the Champions League; something the Arsenal manager has yet to accomplish.