Arsenal are in formal talks with William Saliba over a new contract as they look to tie down the Frenchman to a fresh deal at the Emirates Stadium.
The 21-year-old has been in sensational form for the Gunners so far this season, with Saliba helping Arsenal to the top of the Premier League table. He has started every single top-flight outing alongside Gabriel in central defence and has since received plenty of praise for his performances.
However, Saliba's current deal does run out next summer, although the Gunners have an option to extend it by a further year. Arsenal completed the signing of the talented centre-back in a deal worth around £27million back in 2019, but he hasn't had his chance in the first-team until this season.
He has instead spent time out on loan at Saint-Etienne, Nice and then Marseille, with Saliba winning the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year for his efforts at the latter last term. Mikel Arteta has handed Saliba a deserved opportunity and he has taken that with both hands.
According to The Athletic, Arsenal are negotiating over a new, and improved contract for Saliba but it is understood no agreement has been reached as of yet. The Gunners are keen to tie down Saliba after they handed centre-back partner Gabriel a five-year contract earlier in the month.
Edu is hoping to keep Saliba at the Emirates, with the talented defender attracting interest from some of the top European clubs, including Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich. Negotiations are well underway to handing Saliba a new contract, but he isn't the only player Arsenal want to keep for the long-term.
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Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli are also understood to be high on Arsenal's list of priorities when it comes to new contracts. Arteta put pen to paper on fresh terms in May, signalling a serious degree of faith from the Emirates boardroom which has since showed promising signs of paying off.
Arsenal have dropped just five points all season, with two of those dropped points coming in a 1-1 draw against Southampton last Sunday. Arteta spoke about the importance of returning to winning ways as they secured a 5-0 win over Nottingham Forest - with Saliba keeping yet another clean sheet.
He said: "Big teams have to respond as quickly as possible. We did that after the disappointment of Thursday night. You don’t have time. We had one half-training session, and we had to be ready — not only physically but mentally - against a team that beat Liverpool and the pressure is on. We need to get used to that."
