The social media team at Arsenal appear to have dropped an early team news hint ahead of the clash with Bournemouth. Mikel Arteta will welcome the Cherries to the Emirates Stadium this afternoon as the Gunners look to extend their three-game winning streak.
The north Londoners sit top of the table with a five point lead over Manchester City. Arsenal took great advantage of their game in hand as they ran riot at the King Power Stadium, defeating Leicester City 4-0.
Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard have been integral in the Gunners' push for the Premier League title thus far, showcasing Arteta's wealth of attacking options. But, the Spaniard's defence has been just as important with Ben White, Gabriel Magalhaes, Oleksandr Zinchenko and William Saliba priding themselves with the best defensive record in the top-four.
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And, the latter of whom looks set to be involved against Bournemouth following a potential hint. Saliba is the one, and only, played to feature on Arsenal's pre-match graphic on social media.
While it does not necessarily mean that the France international will definitely start, it usually suggests that they will be involved in some capacity. If Saliba is to start against the Cherries, his appearance will come just hours after Arteta revealed the peaks and troughs of his relationship with the defender.
Saliba had been sent out on loan three separate occasions after signing from St. Etienne in 2019 and, despite being named Ligue 1 young player of the year with Marseille last term, the Arsenal boss admitted that he still had some concerns in pre-season.
"The first question was how the player is going to reintegrate into our dynamic after being out for so long," Arteta said. "Is there some frustration there, something personal between, for example, between me and the player because he could not understand that?
"Or his environment, his expectations coming back or the amount that we paid for him, his age? Is it the same to do it in France as it is to do it in this league for Arsenal because you don’t have 21-year-old defenders at the top level in England?
"For the first week I didn’t speak to him," the Gunners boss added. "I just wanted to see – naturally, without me really interfering in his thoughts – how he was. Because then you can understand the real him and after that I spoke to him.
"When he has made mistakes - with the crowd the first time he made a mistake that cost us a goal, the crowd reacted extremely positively towards him. But he is naturally really composed. He doesn’t get too bothered about opinions or getting nervy in certain situations. That’s a big quality."
Arteta concluded by revealing how Saliba has become a favourite in the dressing room. The Spaniard said: "He’s really funny, and he doesn’t want to be funny.
"He’s really liked around the place. He’s good, he has his aura and presence and always the humour and energy around him. And then he is very focussed and determined to become a top player."
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