Date: 4th August 2022 at 11:01am
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Former Tottenham man Jamie O’Hara is not convinced by Arsenal defender William Saliba, insisting that he is not good enough to compete for a first-team spot.

THE LOWDOWN: GROWING PROFILE

Saliba, who is yet to make a competitive appearance for Arsenal, joined Arsenal from Saint Etienne in 2019. Since then, he has spent his time on loan back in France. Despite his reputation and talent, it was at Marseille in the 2021/22 campaign that he earned numerous plaudits from the fans and his parent club.

Now back at Arsenal and ready to challenge for a first-team spot, the 21-year-old has impressed the manager and the fans in the club’s pre-season outings, starting in wins against Everton and Chelsea – keeping a clean sheet in both games. After the Chelsea win, Mikel Arteta praised the Frenchman’s qualities and his performance said a lot about what could be in the coming campaign.

His latest solid performance came against Sevilla in the Emirates Cup last weekend, where the Gunners hammered the La Liga side 6-0. The Frenchman was composed and did well at the heart of the defence.

THE LATEST: SHOCK TALK

Meanwhile, former Tottenham man Jamie O’Hara is not convinced by defender William Saliba, despite the strong performances he has produced in preseason, In addition, he also feels the £27m signing should be sold by the Gunners this summer while his stock is still high.

“Who?” O’Hara replied when asked by talkSPORT Edge if Arsenal should keep or sell Saliba.

“I mean you’re asking me about players, I have no interest in Arsenal whatsoever. If you have loaned him out and he has been there three seasons, you’ve loaned him out twice [then] he obviously ain’t good enough. Get rid of him.”

THE VERDICT: O’HARA CAN BE IGNORED

There are no two ways about this, Saliba has to remain at the club this season. Although there was an attempt from Marseille to get him on loan again, his performances in the US tour have made Mikel Arteta change his mind.

With Takehiro Tomiyasu still battling fitness issues, Ben White has been forced to start as a make-shift fullback in pre-season. In turn, this has allowed Saliba to feature in the heart of the Gunners’ defence, alongside Gabriel Magalhaes.

Saliba has shown that he is ready to feature heavily for Arsenal with his performances. The defender has a high ceiling and is already showing good promise at 21 years of age.

Without a doubt, Saliba has taken the opportunity given to him with both hands and it is not out of place to think he could be named in Arsenal’s starting lineup for their 2022/23 Premier League opener against Crystal Palace next Friday.

 

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