Marcel Desailly has apologised to William Saliba for his previous criticism of the Arsenal centre-back, admitting the defender is world class.
Back in 2023, former France and Chelsea centre-back Marcel Desailly was critical of William Saliba, claiming the player was not an extraordinary talent.
“I don’t believe his individual qualities to be above average,” Desailly said then. “He’s at a very, very high level but not extraordinary.
“As things stand, I don’t know how to associate him with [Ibrahima] Konate or with [Dayot] Upamecano so that he can excel and develop all the talent that he has in him.”
Yet Desailly has now gone back on those comments, admitting Saliba’s subsequent performances have proved him wrong.
“I have to apologise to William Saliba, because I never saw this level of performance coming,” Desailly said this week (via GFFN). “I looked at him when he first joined Arsenal and I didn’t see him becoming a world-class player – that was a huge misjudgement!
“He has shown leadership, consistency and he has such a high ceiling; we haven’t even seen the best of him yet.
“I’m so proud of him, especially with how he’s cemented himself into Mikel Arteta’s system and become a crucial player for them. The club was desperate for leaders a few years ago, and Saliba is now part of the leadership group there.
“France are so lucky to have him too; they can rely on a brilliant centre-back in him at the upcoming World Cup. He’s a really valuable asset to both his club and country, and I look forward to seeing how good he can become.”
Saliba is certainly proving himself as one of the world’s best defenders, and not just with tackles and clearances. Gradient Sports report that from 1,085 ball control attempts this season, Saliba has made just one miscontrol under pressure and two leading to a ball loss.
That gives the centre-back the lowest miscontrol percentage among all outfield players in the Premier League. So Arsenal aren’t just getting defensive security out of possession, they also have a player they can fully rely on when on the ball.
It seemed to take a while for France manager Didier Deschamps to accept that Saliba was his best centre-back, and perhaps that impacted perceptions of the player back in his home country.
But at this point you’d be a fool not to admit he’s capable of competing with any central defender out there.