A flawless stayThe president of Saint-Etienne, Bernard Caiazzo, confirmed that William Saliba was about to join Arsenal and be loaned to the French club for the 2019/20 season.
The deal was almost over once before, but Tottenham Hotspur finally intervened only at the last minute to try to divert the agreement from their rivals in North London.
OFFICIAL: Saint-Etienne President Bernard Caiazzo has confirmed to Le Progres that William Saliba will join Arsenal, but will be loaned to the French club for the upcoming season.
"Everything is on track with Arsenal, William will make the season with us." pic.twitter.com/HATqYqICpx
– Goal (@goal) July 20, 2019
However, as reported by Goal, the President of Saint Etienne has confirmed that his young central defender is about to complete his transfer to the gunners and will immediately be loaned to Ligue 1 next season.
Caiazzo said, "Everything is on track with Arsenal, William will make the season with us. "
The 18-year-old, highly rated, made 16 appearances in the French league during his first season last year and caught the attention of Unai Emery and his scouting team.
Arsenal was to announce an agreement with the young Frenchman last week, only to Spurs to make an offer at the last minute, which delayed the procedure.
However, their attempts seem to have been unsuccessful, as Saliba is on the verge of concluding an agreement with Arsenal that is rumored to be around 27 million pounds.
The youngster will be the second 18-year-old to sign for the Gunners this summer after Gabriel Martinelli's arrival earlier this month.
Saliba will be the first signing to be completed by new technical director Edu, who has been invited by the club to oversee all the actions of the first team, including recruiting new players. Perhaps with surprise, the youngster will join Saint-Etienne on loan for the entire next season, despite the lack of options at the back currently available to Emery.
Club captain Laurent Koscielny recently refused to travel with the team to the United States for a pre-season tour, while talks on a new deal failed.
Koscielny has more than 12 months on his current contract and risks leaving the Emirates Stadium for a free transfer next summer.
