Thierry Henry feels Arsenal superstar is the best Premier League player in his position 'by a mile'

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry reckons Gunners star William Saliba is the best central defender in the Premeir League at the moment.

The Frenchman has built a brilliant partnership alongside left-footed Brazil international Gabriel. Together, the pair have ensured that the north London side have conceded the fewest goals (14) in the Premier League this season.

Saliba has won 59% of ground duels and 55% of his aerial battles in the top flight this season. He has also managed an incredible 93% passing accuracy and recovers the ball more than five times per game.

Henry said about the defender (via Mirror):

"Right now I think he (Saliba) is (the best), by a mile. The way he can defend a 1 v 1, the way he allows Arsenal to stay higher (up the pitch) and defend the 45-50 yards behind him is second to none."

"His speed, the way he recovers, and when he recovers the ball, he doesn’t just kick it into the stands – he tries to get it back (to his teammates), which is important."

Henry added:

"I was working in France when he was on loan to Marseille (in 2021-22), and I was surprised that Arsenal didn’t keep him because I thought he was better than what we had. But he went on loan, and he came back and he showed everybody that that was a mistake, and now he’s now the best defender in the league."

Saliba signed with the north Londoners in the summer of 2019 from Saint-Etienne for a reported fee of £27 million and had loan spells at Nice and Marseille.

The Marseille stint saw Saliba named the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year. The 22-year-old has made 54 appearances for Arsenal, bagging four goals and two assists across competitions.

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Arsenal beat Luton Town in thriller at Kenilworth Road

Declan Rice

Arsenal beat Luton Town 4-3 through a 97th-minute Declan Rice winner. This incredible clash saw the Gunners take the lead through Gabriel Martinelli in the 20th minute.

However, Luton hit back through Gabriel Osho's 25th-minute header from a corner. After Gabriel Jesus restored the Gunners' lead (45'), the north London side conceded from another corner, in the 49th minute (Elijah Adebayo).

The Hatters went ahead following Ross Barkley's effort that snuck under David Raya (57'). Kai Havertz, though, equalised for the Gunners three minutes later before Rice scored a dramatic last-gasp winner from a set-piece.