Arsenal Transfer news: The Gunners submit a €30M bid for William Saliba

What's the news?

The Gunners have made an opening bid of €30million plus bonuses to AS Saint Etienne for William Saliba.

In case you didn't know...

An impressive breakthrough season for the 18-year old William Saliba has seen several big European clubs looking to sign the French defender.

Arsenal has been in pole position to sign the 18-year old after earlier agreeing on personal terms for a 5-year contract.

The heart of the matter

According to the French radio station RMC Sport, Arsenal have made an opening bid of €30 million plus bonuses to sign 18-year AS Saint Etienne defender William Saliba.

According to the report, the first round of negotiations has already been done with the Ligue 1 outfit with the second round to be done within this week.

The report further states that Arsenal has agreed to loan out the 18-year-old to AS Saint Etienne for a year following the completion of the transfer.

The Gunners swift negotiations are believed to be due to the rumoured interest from arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

William Saliba, who is being dubbed as the next Raphael Varane, had an impressive debut season for the French Ligue 1 side.

The 18-year-old French defender made 19 appearances for AS Saint Etienne last season shortly after making his professional debut for AS Saint Etienne II earlier in the season.

What's next?

Arsenal finished fifth last season and need serious reinforcements. Arsenal is expected to have a busy few weeks in the transfer window with strong rumours of signing Celtic and Scotland left-back, Kieran Tierney, doing the rounds.

The Gunners are also expected to sell some of their stars in order to raise money for potential new signings.