Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has claimed that people need to give Arsenal youngster William Saliba time following comparisons between the two in recent weeks. The Gunners centre-back has received plenty of praise in his first two appearances for the club since the start of the season.
The Frenchman made his return to the Emirates after enjoying a successful loan spell with Marseille. The 21-year-old guided the side to second in the league and his impressive performances earned him a senior national team call-up as well as the Ligue 1 Player of the Year award - previously won by the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Aurelien Tchouameni.
His Arsenal debut saw an imposing display against Crystal Palace, with plenty of praise coming in for the game and a first three points earned for the campaign. He retained his place against Leicester City, where he was clapped by fans, despite scoring an own goal with a misjudged header back to Aaron Ramsdale.
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On the mistake made by the defender, manager Mikel Arteta said: "We paid the bill [for his mistake], but the good thing is we didn't really because we won the game. It's much easier to learn when that happens. I'm happier today than I was last week with Palace because of the way he played after that, I think it was incredible."
Further mistakes may be likely as he continues to develop, but former defender Ferdinand has some advice for the youngster should that happen, as well as a comment on comparisons between them. He said on Vibe with Five: "[Joel Beya says he is better than Ferdinand was at his age] How many Premier League games has he played? And how many Premier League games I played by that point? I broke the British record at the time and people are making comparisons, it’s a madness.
"Give the boy time, man. Give him time. He’s doing well. Listen, you don’t judge players when it’s all going well, yeah you say brilliant. I like to see the next phase when it goes against you or when the team are in a little bit of distress.
"I still want to see the chest popping out, I want to see the shoulders back and I still want to see you on the ball, on the front foot showing that determination and desire, a lot of what we’re not getting at Man United but Saliba, he’s showing great potential. Young Player of the Year in France last year, he’s got a lot to do here to make sure he stays in that team because he started off very, very well."
It remains to be seen exactly how his career ahead will pan out. However, Saliba appears to have all the tools at his disposal to be a key player in the future for the Gunners.
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