Arsenal centre-back William Saliba has opened up on his future, stating that he wouldn't be surprised if he was to stay in France next season.
The talented 21-year-old defender is currently on loan at Marseille, working under the stewardship of Jorge Sampaoli, where he has been operating in his preferred position at right centre back. The consistent levels of performance delivered by Saliba recently earned him his first call up for the national team, where he made his debut against the Ivory Coast.
Certainly, Arsenal fans have been encouraged with the way the former Saint-Étienne prospect has been performing but Saliba's latest comments suggest that they may have to wait even longer before seeing him in north London. "There is always a chance," he said in an interview after being asked whether he will stay at Marseille next season. "I do not hide that I am very happy in Marseille.
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"I have developed, I have passed a milestone. If I make it into France’s squad it’s thanks to Marseille, because there is a lot of visibility. They are a very big club with a lot of pressure, but when you’re good there are a lot of good things that happen to you. We will see in May or June depending on the discussions. Today, my future, I don’t know what it is.."
Having said this, Saliba has previously commented on how he still aspires to have a future at Arsenal but wants to play regular first-team football. Given the fact that the Gunners will likely feature in Europe next season, the increase in games should give plenty of opportunities to rotate the squad.
It's clear that Arsenal require significant depth going into next season so that a drop in quality isn't apparent when first team players become unavailable and having a trio of Ben White, Gabriel Magalhaes and Saliba to choose from should give Mikel Arteta complete confidence that a new central defender is not needed.
