Arsenal have released a statement after Saint-Etienne announced last night that they failed to reach an agreement with the Gunners to extend William Saliba’s loan for a short period of time.
The Ligue 1 outfit, Saliba’s boyhood club, sparked the war of words with their statement last night which claims Arsenal have ‘deprived’ the centre-back of the chance to play in the Coupe de France final.
Saint-Etienne wrote that Mikel Arteta was happy for the wonderkid’s loan to be extended, however ‘absolutely unacceptable sports and financial conditions’ from Arsenal have prevented an agreement.
The Gunners signed Saliba last summer for a fee of £27m as per BBC Sport and the French starlet returned on loan to his boyhood club for the season as part of this deal.
Arsenal claim their ‘surprise’ after struggling to reach an agreement with Saint-Etienne over a loan extension, the Gunners don’t mention any talk of financial conditions – rather the ace’s fitness.
The north London outfit state that the Ligue 1 side failed to adhere to their specific ‘training plan’ for the centre-back, as the Gunners don’t wish to aggravate the injury the ace is returning from.
Arsenal added that they were by no means ‘prepared to risk’ Saliba’s ‘welfare’ by sanctioning an extension under the terms proposed by Saint-Etienne.
It’s a real shame to see relations between the two clubs sour over this matter, at the end of the day Saliba is the only real loser in this deal as he’s missing the chance to represent his side in a cup final.
Saliba has looked solid this season, but the ace’s impact has been hindered by constant injury troubles that have limited the talent to just 17 appearances across all competitions.