William Saliba has been given a major Arsenal boost ahead of next season, and he can thank Xavi Hernandez for it. This is because Barcelona are reportedly close to agreeing to a deal for their centre-back Ronald Araujo.
According to Spanish journalist Gerard Romero, Edu had offered Araujo a deal worth £5m-a-year to join the club the next season. The Uruguayan international had yet to sign a new deal with Barcelona with his contract set to expire at the end of the season, but transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has claimed that the defender is close to signing a new contract at the club.
The 23-year-old certainly seemed like a direct replacement for Saliba, whose future with the Gunners was uncertain. However, with Arsenal now unlikely to sign their preferred centre-back in the summer transfer window, Saliba has space to breakthrough into Mikel Arteta’s starting squad.
READ MORE: Mikel Arteta saves £10m in mega Newcastle player demands by including Arsenal star in swap deal
When the youngster initially went out on loan to Marseille at the start of the season, he seemed almost downbeat and defeated, and had pushed the blame to Arteta for the reason that he was not able to break into the Arsenal first-team. However, as the season has progressed Saliba has started to take responsibility for his performances, and showing why he is ready to break into the Arsenal first team.
Speaking about his loan move away from Arsenal in a recent interview with French outlet L’equipe, Saliba said: "They are often in contact with my agent,"
"They send me messages. They watch my matches. They tell me to continue like this. I haven't played much with the Gunners. The coach [Mikel Arteta] made his choices, that's life. I left on loan, I played matches and, thanks to my performances, I became a [senior] international.” He added.
"I'm sure I can't just be on the bench at Arsenal and be happy. I want to play as a starter. Afterwards, if I come into the rotation as a substitute, it's not like staying with the Under-23s and never being in the squad."
These comments came just after it was clear that Araujo was going to stay at Barcelona and it should provide as a major boost to Arsenal fans, and to Arteta as it was unclear whether Saliba wanted to stay in north London. However, these comments highlight the strong mentality of the Frenchman that he is ready to stay and fight for a place at Arsenal even if he is not in the starting line-up.
Saliba has been sent out on loan twice since Arteta took over as Gunners boss which angered sections of supporters as they believed he was ready to be a first-team regular. It has been understandable why he would want a different challenge after not being trusted by Arteta, however, next season is set to be different.
Arsenal only have three centre-backs in the squad currently in Rob Holding, Gabriel Magalhaes and Ben White. This means the fourth spot is available which Saliba should be looking to grab with both hands.
He has shown the potential and qualities he possesses during his loan stint with Marseille which also led to a call-up to the French national team. He is certainly ready for the Premier League chance, and after losing out on Araujo, Edu should not try to pursue another centre-back, as Saliba will already feel like a new signing.
