Mikel Arteta has heaped praise on William Saliba following the defender’s first appearance of pre-season for Arsenal this weekend.

William Saliba joined pre-season with Arsenal at the same time as the other internationals, missing the first couple of games in England and Germany but linking up for the U.S. tour.

With Ben White struggling with a minor injury setback, Saliba has an opportunity to lay down a marker in the England international’s absence, and that started with a match against Everton this weekend.

By all accounts, Saliba put in a good performance, successfully shutting down every Everton attack he was faced with and doing solid work in possession as well.

Mikel Arteta was certainly pleased with what he saw from the 21-year-old in his first game back.

“He was really good,” Arteta said. “I think he played a really good game, he looked really composed.

“Straight away from day one he looked completely focused, he’s evolved the way we wanted, and today I think he had a great performance.”

If Saliba can continue to impress in the remaining friendlies over the next couple of weeks, he should have a great shot at being in the starting lineup when Arsenal face Crystal Palace in the Premier League opener.

That would in turn make it more likely he commits his future to the Gunners. His only hesitancy seems to stem from the fact he doesn’t know if he’ll be playing regularly for Arsenal ahead of the World Cup.

Saliba’s agent recently told the media they’d held talks with Edu and that the defender is happy at Arsenal, but links to the likes of Marseille and Atletico Madrid will persist until he extends his deal.