William Saliba has been sensational for Arsenal so far in the Premier League campaign. His defensive excellence was met by his attacking capabilities as he scored his first goal for the Gunners with a wonder strike against Bournemouth.
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.
After his excellent displays recently, Saliba continues to dominate the Arsenal statistics and plaudits. He is also beginning to show that he has the best qualities compared to other defenders in England’s top division.
READ MORE: Edu handed chance to solve key Arsenal dilemma by signing Arsene Wenger's dream Liverpool star
His defensive dominance has also been replicated by his perfect on-the-ball statistics which makes him the ideal Arteta defender. Saliba completed all 76 of his pass attempts against Bournemouth.
The Frenchman made the most passes by an Arsenal defender with a 100% completion rate in a Premier League match for the first time since the Gunners' 2003/2004 invincible season when the data first became available according to Opta.
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 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 centre-back in the Premier League - do you do that when you're 19-20? It's not easy. He looked the real deal.
We looked at Zinchenko and Jesus before the game, but he adds something. We always felt they were weak. Brentford, they got bullied. Here his physical stature will certainly help them in tough area games."
Saliba brings a sense of calmness to the Arsenal defence, and that is epitomised by his ability to pass the ball and not make mistakes that could put his team under pressure. Arteta likes maintaining possession from the defence, and Saliba’s incredible passing ability shows why he is the perfect player in the centre-back position.
READ NEXT:
Arsenal already have their own Diogo Jota as Mikel Arteta makes special request for £34m signing
Arsenal news and transfers LIVE: All the latest updates and rumours from the Emirates Stadium
Full Arsenal Premier League fixture list for 2022/23
Arsenal transfer business under the microscope in 'good deal' or 'bad deal'
Arsenal can re-attempt Mikel Arteta's ideal Ruben Neves transfer amid £42m Premier League deal
