An integral member of the Arsenal squad could be open to leaving north London, and it would be a real blow for manager Mikel Arteta if the Spaniard lost him.
Who are Arsenal’s most important players?
The Premier League title hopefuls boast many star men in their blockbuster squad, which is testament to both Arteta and sporting director Edu Gaspar‘s exceptional work in the transfer windows over these past few year
Arteta first joined Arsenal from Man City when the club were a shadow of their former selves, but the tactician has since transformed them into genuine title contenders and one of England’s most elite sides once again.
Their star front quartet of Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard can take a lot of the plaudits for this – having scored a combined total of 59 goals in all competitions last season – as Arsenal finished 2023/2024 with 89 top flight points on the board.
|
Arsenal’s next five Premier League games |
Date |
|---|---|
|
Leicester City (home) |
September 28 |
|
Southampton (home) |
October 5 |
|
Bournemouth (away) |
October 19 |
|
Liverpool (home) |
October 27 |
|
Newcastle United (away) |
November 2 |
Club captain and chief creator Martin Odegaard is sidelined through injury right now, but the Norwegian has been pivotal as well these last few seasons. Club record-signing Declan Rice, who played in all of Arsenal’s 38 games last season as a general in Arteta’s midfield, is also a shining light in the team.
Further back, star defensive duo William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes have formed an exceptional partnership at the heart of Arteta’s defence since the former was introduced into the first-team fold in 2022.
Saliba has been linked with a move to Real Madrid as a result, with Carlo Ancelotti’s European champions in the market for an elite-level centre-back.
Saliba could be open to joining Real Madrid from Arsenal
According to reports out of Spain this week, Saliba could be open to joining Real from Arsenal one day, but the Galacticos will run into a brick wall considering the north Londoners have adopted a firm not-for-sale stance at this moment in time.
The France international, if he were to make his interest in joining more formal in the future, may have to twist Arsenal’s arm for it to happen – as Edu and Arteta deem him untouchable and rightly so.
Arsenal will command a price tag north of £100 million to even consider selling their “superstar” defender, according to some reports, and it isn’t something that supporters could have to seriously worry about at this moment in time.
“Whether it’s PSG, Real Madrid or another top European club, it’s very hard to see them being able to prise Saliba away from Arsenal,” said CBS reporter Jonathan Johnson to CaughtOffside recently.
“He’s one of their top talents at the moment, and one of the best defenders in world football, and after a strong showing at the Euros he’s shown he’s in that world class bracket. I think now that Mikel Arteta’s future has also been cleared up, I think Saliba will be looked at as a player that the Gunners hope to keep as a key cornerstone for the team.
“For the moment, I can’t see anyone going in for Saliba while he remains such a key part of that Arsenal project, but, depending on what happens this season, who knows, perhaps a scenario could develop that presents an opportunity for one of these top European clubs to sound out his situation.”
