Newcastle United could bring Arsenal defender William Saliba on loan this summer. The 20-year-old central defender is yet to play for the Gunners’ first team and has spent the last two seasons on loan.
As per Daily Mail, the Magpies could make a move for the Frenchman as the Gunners are interested in signing Ben White from Brighton.
The North London side feels that Saliba needs to spend another season away on loan before challenging for a spot in the Gunners’ first team.
Saliba was signed by Arsenal in 2019 for a fee of around £27 million from Saint-Etienne. The 20-year-old played 20 league games for Nice last season. Marseille and Lille are also interested, so Newcastle United will have to act fast if they want to sign the Frenchman.
William Saliba – Would he be an upgrade?
William Saliba was signed by the Gunners for a huge fee for an 18-year-old defender but is yet to play a single game for the Arsenal senior team. Saliba is a towering figure at the back, standing at 6’4″. The Gunners defender is a confident player with the ball at his feet and has great composure for a player who is just 20 years of age.
Saliba is a modern defender who is good with bringing the ball out from the back and covers ground quickly. He has decent close control to shield the ball and get out of tricky situations in defence.
Like all good modern defenders, Saliba too is excellent at passing it from defence, averaging 73.2 passes per game last season, with a good completion rate of 91.3%. He also averaged 5 long balls per game for Nice in the league last season.
Saliba uses his height to good effect and is decent aerially, averaging 1.9 aerial duels won per game last season. The Frenchman seems to possess the qualities to be a good Premier League centre-back.
Newcastle United may need a few additions to the backline, as they have players who may not be good enough for the Premier League. The Magpies conceded bucket loads of goals last season, which needs to be addressed.
Saliba would get valuable game time at Newcastle as they play a three-man defence which could allow him to get more chances. He could form a decent partnership with captain Jamaal Lascelles and Fabian Schar or Federico Fernandez.
Saliba could turn out to be an upgrade on Newcastle’s current options like Ciaran Clark, Paul Dummett or Emil Krafth, who played in the backline last season. His passing, be it long or short, could help the Magpies build attacks and be stronger on the counter.