Arsenal will only pay a small amount for the transfer of William Saliba upfront, according to reports in France.

William Saliba after signing for Arsenal from St. Etienne (Photo via Arsenal.com)
William Saliba after signing for Arsenal from St. Etienne (Photo via Arsenal.com)

Saliba is joining Arsenal for €25m this summer, but going back on loan to St. Etienne for the 2019/20 season. As a result, plenty of fans were worried that the club were taking a big hit to their transfer budget without getting a player in return.

According to Manu Lonjon of Yahoo Sport France, that’s not the case. He writes on Twitter that Arsenal will only pay a small amount for Saliba this summer, with the rest to follow later, when the player actually joins.

With Dani Ceballos joining on loan, Gabriel Martinelli hardly denting the budget and the sale of David Ospina, Arsenal barely have a net spend at this point. With any luck, that means one or two more signings before the end of the window.

First on the list appears to be Kieran Tierney, with a deal still alive despite some recent reports suggesting otherwise.

There’s also the pursuit of Wilfried Zaha to be resolved, or potentially another centre-back – though surely not both given the costs involved in any Zaha deal. It could be a very interesting final fortnight of the window.