Saliba: ‘I won’t be happy on Arsenal’s bench, I want to start’

William Saliba has once again discussed his Arsenal future, revealing his desire to “play as a starter” next season.

The young centre-half has developed tremendously this season whilst on loan at Marseille.

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He received his first cap for the French national team last month, coming off the bench for 32 minutes against the Ivory Coast before playing the full 90 in a 5-0 win over South Africa.

Saliba joined Arsenal for £27m in 2019 but has not made a single first-team appearance for the Premier League side.

The 21-year-old spent 2019/20 on loan at Saint-Etienne, only to return as a member of the Under-23s side in north London.

He was loaned out to Nice in January 2021, with no Gunners first-team experience under his belt, where he once again impressed in Ligue 1.

Having previously discussed his Arsenal future, Saliba has now explained how his parent club are watching his progress. He has also admitted that returning to play ‘in the rotation as a substitute’ will be better than only playing for the U23s.

“They are often in contact with my agent,” he told L’Equipe (via Sport Witness). “They send me messages. They watch my matches. They tell me that we have to continue like this.

“I haven’t played much with the Gunners. The coach has made his choices, that’s life. I left on loan, I put the matches together, and I became an international. What happened to me forged a tougher mind, it is not because you have cost €30m that you are playing. I take it positively, even if there are times that you wonder.

“For six months I saw I was the only in the group not to play, that hurt.”

Saliba added: “Of course, I can’t be happy on Arsenal’s bench. I want to play as a starter. Afterwards,