William Saliba has been sensational for Arsenal so far in the Premier League campaign. His defensive excellence was epitomised in the North London Derby against Tottenham.
The Frenchman has bought a sense of calmness and assertiveness to Mikel Arteta’s defence which was evidently lacking last season. More interestingly, he has also added speed to the backline, which is also crucial to playing a high line.
This was pivotal in the North London Derby on Saturday, as Tottenham striker Harry Kane lost battles on a few occasions against the Frenchman despite his goal in the first half. Saliba was challenged by Arteta before the match, and Jamie Carragher highlighted that the Frenchman exceeded expectations.
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Arteta has placed faith in Saliba to stop Kane ahead of the clash. Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Arteta said: "No this is football and Willy has shown what he’s capable of in the past few months. That doesn’t mean that the lineup is always going to be in the same direction, but he’s been so good from my side I have no doubts."
The Gunners were unable to keep a clean sheet in the match, but Saliba was still the stand-out player. This was highlighted by former Arsenal defender Martin Keown who was in awe of the youngster, as during his live commentary on BT Sport he labelled him as the “real deal”.
The 21-year-old was pivotal in helping Arsenal to maintain their first clean sheet of the season at a tricky ground in Selhurst Park. The Gunners had lost 3-0 at the same ground in the previous campaign. His performance was so good that Jamie Carragher awarded the Frenchman with the man of the match award.
"I thought he was very good. He didn't have too much to do in terms of the first half, but there was one moment where Arsenal were pushing out a lot. Anderson kept putting balls over the top, but there was one ball that went in behind Ben White but the way he dealt with it," Carragher said on Sky Sports when speaking about Saliba.
"Before you see him play, he looks the part, for such a young age, helping Ben White, Arsenal fans have been excited to see him. You can argue was it right to put him out, but he is 21 playing center-back in the Premier League - do you do that when you're 19-20? It's not easy. He looked the real deal.”
Interestingly, Carragher followed up with his praise for Saliba during the first-half of the North London Derby. The Liverpool legend took to Twitter to show his appreciation for the Frenchman by posting ‘Saliba’ with a fire emoji next to it.
The fact that legendary Premier League defenders are showering praise for the 21-year-old highlights how quick Saliba has adapted to the Premier League. It also shows that Saliba passed the test that Arteta set out for him, and with his contract stance on the mind of many Gunners, the north London side must meet his demands, judging by the Frenchman’s performances so far this season.
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