“We are very satisfied” – Marseille club president rates Arsenal player yet to feature under Arteta as ‘best’ he has seen in his career 

Marseille president Pablo Longoria has heaped praise on Arsenal defender William Saliba. The 20-year-old has been excellent for Jorge Sampaoli's side this season on loan from the north London club.

The president of the Ligue 1 club Pablo Longoria evidently could not be happier with the impact Saliba has made at Stade Vélodrome. Longoria even went on to claim that Saliba is among the 'best' young defenders' he has ever seen.

When asked about signing the Frenchman permanently, Longoria said, as quoted by Le10 Sport:

“It’s a three-way question. For the player’s own club, Arsenal, the player and OM. We have to see our possibilities. He is very good here, we are very satisfied with his performance. William is one of the best young defenders I’ve seen in my career. After all, it all depends on the three parties. It’s a matter of market value. But we have extraordinary relations with Arsenal.”

Saliba joined the Gunners back in the summer of 2019 when Unai Emery was still in charge of the club. However, the young defender is yet to play a single minute of football for the north London club.

Despite being signed for a pretty big fee of £27 million, Mikel Arteta did not play the youngster when he moved back to the Emirates following his first loan spell with AS Saint-Étienne. Arteta did retain the Frenchman for the first half of the 2020-21 season but did not give him his much-awaited debut.

Saliba eventually joined Ligue 1 side Nice for the second half of the 2020-21 season, having failed to get a single minute for the Gunners in the first half. The France U21 international was again overlooked by Arteta last summer as he was once again sent out on loan to Marseille.

Despite the fact that Sailba has impressed for the Ligue 1 side who find themselves second in the table right now, Marseille are unlikely to sign him on a permanent deal.

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Does Saliba have a future at Arsenal?

Mikel Arteta's treatment of Saliba has led to Arsenal fans criticizing the Spaniard in the past. Fans will have to wait and see what awaits the Frenchman when he rejoins his parent club at the end of his loan spell at Stade Vélodrome.

Arsenal could do with another central defender with Calum Chambers already gone. Meanwhile, the duo of Rob Holding and Pablo Mari could also be on their way out in the summer.

Saliba is destined for great things and has a long list of admirers across the continent. It would be the Gunners' loss if Arteta fails to realize the potential of the French wonderkid.