Mikel Arteta suggests when William Saliba will earn Arsenal chance

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has suggested that William Saliba will earn a chance to shine when he is ready, according to Football London.

The Gunners boss was quizzed on Saliba ahead of tonight’s final Europa League group game against Dundalk.

Arsenal travel to Ireland looking to continue their perfect record in the competition, with Arteta set to make some changes.

Saliba is yet to make a first-team appearance for the Gunners and some supporters have questioned why.

The youngster was signed from Saint-Etienne for £27 million and spent last season on loan in France.

Arteta has now been addressing the situation surrounding the 19-year-old and his future.

He told Football London: “Whenever we have the spaces and we believe that he’s ready to play with us. To be fair, he’s made massive improvements in the last few months and it’s been a really tricky situation for him.

“As I mentioned before, we designed a pathway for him and there were a lot of things that happened to him in his personal life and professionally as well. Now we’ve made some steps forward, he’s working really hard and played for the under-21s again.”

TBR View – Arsenal should utilise Saliba

The Gunners do have a fair few central defenders to call upon but perhaps in the second half of the season, Saliba will get a chance.

Having signed with bags of potential it seems as though supporters would rather he got the nod over say Shkodran Mustafi who is out of contract next summer.

Saliba showcased his talents in France and looks to be the type of defender that could thrive under Arteta’s management in England.

Of course, the Arsenal boss knows his players but with the Gunners defence starting to look shaky, it could be time to call on the £40,000-a-week Saliba.