As you might have seen earlier this week, Mikel Arteta made his intentions very clear when it comes to William Saliba, who was sent on loan to Marseille to get game time, where he excelled, earning himself his first two France caps in the process.
However, the deal taking him there didn’t include an option to buy, meaning he’s set to return to Arsenal, where the Spanish manager plans to use him as competition for the likes of Gabriel Magalhaes and Benjamin White.
That is, of course, unless someone like Newcastle United comes in with a big transfer offer to entice the Gunners into a sale.
We say this because French journalist Fabrice Hawkins took to Twitter on Thursday to report that while Arsenal ‘want to keep Saliba’, clubs such as the Magpies, Napoli and Atlético Madrid ‘are interested’.
As for Marseille in all this, it’s pointed out that Pablo Longoria and Jorge Sampaoli ‘haven’t abandoned the idea of bringing him back’.
Bien qu’Arsenal souhaite conserver William #Saliba, Newcastle, Naples et l’Atlético Madrid sont intéressés.
Pablo Longoria et Jorge Sampaoli n’ont pas abandonné l’idée de le faire revenir.
— Fabrice Hawkins (@FabriceHawkins) May 26, 2022
That’s all well and good, but if it comes down to pure cash, we all know Newcastle United will win that battle, regardless of their lack of European football.
Saliba is attached to Marseille, however, enjoying himself greatly during his spell there during the recently finished campaign.
This means he could snub Newcastle, and perhaps even push Arsenal into sending him back to the south of France in the process.
We’ll have to wait and see.
