William Saliba takes a swipe at Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta by claiming he was ‘judged on two-and-a-half games’ and is now enjoying his football ‘as part of a team’ during loan spell at Nice
- William Saliba has claimed Mikel Arteta didn’t give enough chances at Arsenal
- The Frenchman played a handful of youth-team games before going out on loan
- Saliba has impressed in his first month at Nice, being named Player of the Month
- He was signed by Unai Emery in 2019 and Arteta has not wanted to play him
William Saliba has claimed Mikel Arteta ‘judged me on two-and-a-half matches’ and ‘told me I wasn’t ready’ in a furious outburst at the Arsenal manager.
The 19-year-old joined Arsenal from Saint-Etienne in the summer of 2019 for £27million and was immediately sent back out on loan to the Ligue 1 club.
But when he arrived in London, Saliba failed to make a single senior appearance for the Gunners before being shipped out on loan to Nice in January after Arteta deemed him not ready for first-team action.
William Saliba (L) has claimed Mikel Arteta ‘judged me on two-and-a-half matches’ at Arsenal
Saliba has impressed in the early stages of his return to France. He won Nice’s Player of the Month award for January and has recently formed a partnership with Jean-Clair Todibo, on loan from Barcelona.
But, in an interview on RMC’s ‘Top of the Foot’ show, Saliba has taken another dig at Arteta’s management and claimed he wasn’t afforded enough opportunities to impress the manager.
Saliba said: ‘It is clear that so much has changed in the last year.
‘When I saw that the coach changed, a lot changed for me too. In this year there has been a lot of change. He judged me on two-and-a-half matches. I would have liked for him to play me more. But he told me I wasn’t ready.
‘I was waiting for him to give me a chance, but football is like that. When I initially came to Arsenal the league looked very good so I showed up to training and wanted to train on my own to show the coach I was ready.
Saliba has impressed in Nice, winning the club’s Player of the Month award for January
‘I am happy now, I want to play for Nice. The idea when you’re part of a team is a better feeling for me.’
Saliba was signed by former Arsenal manager Unai Emery but the Frenchman returned from Saint-Etienne to find him gone and Arteta in charge.
Not content with his defensive options, Arteta signed Gabriel Magalhaes from Lille last summer and Saliba was consigned to appearances for their Under 23s with Rob Holding and David Luiz also at the club.
His time playing for the youthful Gunners side was far from successful, he only made eight appearances and was sent off in a 3-0 defeat by AFC Wimbledon in the EFL Trophy in December.
Since arriving in Nice, Saliba has made seven appearances and helped them to two wins and two clean sheets.
