On Tuesday, Mikel Arteta took everyone by surprise by holding an interview with RMC Sport, where he made his stance on William Saliba clear.
The Spanish manager stated he wanted the player, who spent the season on loan at Marseille, back at Arsenal for the upcoming campaign.
The Gunners’ return to European football has a lot to do with this, as Arteta explained there would have been no point keeping the Frenchman around for the current campaign, with the move to the south of France proving extremely beneficial for the defender.
So much so, in fact, that Saliba himself would quite like to remain in Marseille, where he would be playing Champions League football after the Ligue 1 side finished second behind Paris Saint-Germain.
However, with Arteta pushing for him to return to Arsenal and no option to buy in the loan deal sorted out last summer, this looks like a pipe dream.
La Provence on Wednesday analyse what the Gunners manager said on Tuesday, before adding their information at the end.
They explain Jorge Sampaoli wants to ‘absolutely lean on’ Saliba next season, and it would be ‘impossible to rustle up a replacement’ for the Arsenal centre-back.
This is something Pablo Longoria, Marseille’s president, knows, all the while being aware of any potential deal’s ‘complexity’, and is ‘hustling to find a solution that goes his way’.
La Provence add the chief ‘hasn’t said his last word’, especially since he can ‘count on the player’s desire’ to stay.
