William Saliba continues to impress during his loan spell at Marseille, and the recent developments further show that he is ready to break into Mikel Arteta’s plans.
The Ligue 1 side announced that the French defender has won the club’s Player of the Month for his performances in January.
This is now the third time that Saliba has been presented with the award during the current campaign, showing what a big success he has been during his loan stint.
Even more interestingly, Arsenal’s defenders have also won the most Player of the Month awards this season, showing that Saliba is following the same trend.
Aaron Ramsdale collected the Player of the Month award in both October and November, as his heroics between the sticks saw the Gunners charge up the league table after a disappointing start to the Premier League campaign.
Takehiro Tomiyasu has also collected the award this season, showing how crucial the defence has been for Arteta's push for a Champions League place next campaign.
With Saliba also following the same pattern as the defenders at Arsenal in terms of his quality performances, this should allow him to break into Arteta’s team.
At Marseille, Saliba has shown the maturity required to be a regular Premier League centre-back, playing more minutes than any other player aged 20 and under in Europe's top five leagues.
The French defender has proven to be crucial for Jorge Sampaoli’s side and has started every Ligue 1 match since joining the club.
A flurry of marvellous displays earned him a spot in the starting XI of France's best under-23 players, put together by French newspaper L’equipe.
His height and athletic prowess mean he's the perfect build for a defender looking to make waves in the English game, and with a senior call-up to the French national team potentially on the cards, Arsenal must assure him that he has a future at the club.
And if he continues to win more Player of the Month awards then it puts him in a wonderful position to compete with Ben White and Gabriel Magalhaes for a starting spot next season.
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