Arsenal supporters are getting excited about the prospect of having 18-year-old centre-back William Saliba in their ranks next season following the youngster’s impressive performance during St Etienne’s 1-0 win over Lyon.
The Gunners announced the signing of Saliba for a fee of £27 million in July, but he has gone back to St Etienne on loan for the duration of the 2019-2020 season.
He was ruled out of the start of the campaign after undergoing surgery to solve an abductor problem, but returned last week and helped his side keep a clean sheet in a 1-0 victory against Nimes.
And he repeated the feat in Sunday evening’s derby win against Lyon, a match which was former Southampton and Leicester manager Claude Puel’s first game in charge.
(Image: REUTERS)
Saliba impressed during the match, snuffing out the threat of the Lyon attack and generally looking far more senior than his 18 years.
Arsenal fans took to Twitter after the match to show their appreciation for the French defender’s performance.
“Anyone watching William Saliba play against Lyon? I must say, he’s been absolutely fantastic,” said one supporter, while another added: “Saliba like a brick wall. Lyon attacks dying instantly when they come up against him. Cannot wait.”
Another fan said: “Got the perfect arrogance to his game, cannot wait for him to arrive”, and another tweet read: “I cannot wait to see him play in an Arsenal shirt.”
(Image: Stuart MacFarlane)
There was more good news for the Arsenal defence, meanwhile, as manager Unai Emery confirmed previously-injured trio Kieran Tierney, Rob Holding and Hector Bellerin were all close to being fit for Premier League action.
Speaking after the Gunners’ 1-0 win over Bournemouth Emery said: “I think Rob Holding can play 90 minutes with a good performance. Now we are also working with David Luiz and Sokratis, but really, I am very happy. He is going to have a chance to play a lot of matches.
“Kieran Tierney is closer to us, he played on Thursday and today he was on the bench if we needed him. Hector Bellerin needs a little more time, more matches and more training.”
