William Saliba can now call himself a senior France international. The Arsenal defender, currently on loan at Marseille, was a late addition to Didier Deschamps' squad following the withdrawal of Benjamin Pavard through injury and made his debut one day after celebrating his birthday.
And despite this being the 21-year-old's first call-up at this level, he was given an immediate taste of senior international football as Les Bleus came from behind to beat Ivory Coast 2-1 in a competitive friendly between the two nations on Friday night.
Nicolas Pepe had actually threatened to somewhat ruin his teammate's big occasion after he opened the scoring in the 19th minute by beating Hugo Lloris at his near post with a fine strike. Although, France equalised through ex-Gunners striker Olivier Giroud and then claimed the victory when rising star Aurelien Tchouameni netted in the closing stages.
