NICE are “open” to signing new Arsenal loanee William Saliba permanently in the summer.
The French defender, 19, was linked with temporary moves to old club Saint-Etienne and PSV Eindhoven before joining Nice last week.
William Saliba (left) had a difficult start with Nice on Wednesday, earning an early booking as Brest struck twice in the first half for a 2-0 win
France Under-20 star William Saliba is back for a second loan spell with NiceCredit: Alamy Live News
And while Saliba admits failing to break into the Arsenal team was “difficult” for him, Nice president Jean-Pierre Rivere went further.
The Metro report Rivere as saying: “Let’s let him rediscover enjoying being on the pitch, playing.
“At the end of the 6 months, we’ll see – today he’s owned by a club called Arsenal. Everyone in June will come together and decide.
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“A door is always open in life. When you have a situation where parties can talk, the doors are open. We are not there yet.”
Saliba himself blames the coronavirus crisis for his early frustrations at the Emirates.
He said: “My first six months were difficult, because I was coming from six months where I wasn’t able to train because I was at home and couldn’t train outside, couldn’t play.
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“As soon as they came back from holidays, we quickly had the first friendly matches where I lacked rhythm and was a bit insufficient physically.
“‘The coach immediately told me that I was not ready. I would have at least liked to have a chance to rediscover my rhythm.
“But this is football, it’s like that. I have signed a six-month contract, after these six months we will see what happens.”
Arteta says Saliba has made massive improvements but will play when there is space
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
