Arsenal may be faced with a tough decision this summer as they continue to work on a new contract for William Saliba, journalist Charles Watts has claimed.
What’s going on with Saliba and Arsenal?
The France international has performed well for Arsenal this season, but has just one year left on his contract at the club.
This summer is a crucial one for Saliba. Arsenal are in talks to extend his deal, but if they cannot reach an agreement, they may have to think about a sale of one of their most important players.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Watts highlighted Arsenal’s potential concern over Saliba this summer.
“The clock is ticking when it comes to William Saliba, because you can’t really end this summer without Saliba having signed a new contract. You can’t go into the new season surely, with Saliba less than 12 months away from the end of his current deal,” he stated.
“It’s almost a bit of an elephant in the room type situation with Saliba, no one really wants to talk about it, but if this contract doesn’t get sorted in the next six weeks or two months, maybe before everyone comes back for pre-season, then Arsenal are going to have a big decision to make because there’s going to be lots of clubs sniffing around and thinking he’s got 12 months left on his deal with this blatantly generational-almost quality defender, which he’s proven in the Premier League this season, can we get him on the cheap?
“Bids are going to start coming in for William Saliba this summer if he hasn’t signed a new deal and that’s going to leave Arsenal with a bit of a decision to make.”
What should Arsenal do with Saliba?
The 22-year-old has been sensational for Arsenal this season, helping them sustain a title challenge before picking up a long-term injury, and the Gunners capitulated without his presence in the back line.
Mikel Arteta described him as “superb” early on in the campaign, which was his first at the club following at number of loan spells away since he signed in 2019.
Tying him down on a long-term contract should be the priority for Arsenal, and with Bukayo Saka and Aaron Ramsdale reportedly agreeing new deals, there may be hope that the Gunners can hold on to their best talents to remain at the top level for years to come.
If no resolution can be reached in the summer, Arsenal may have to consider sizeable bids for the currently injured centre-back, but they may elect to keep him and attempt to tie him down throughout his final season.
If Saliba is to depart, it would be a huge loss for Arteta, and a top-quality replacement would have to be found.
