West Ham United are interested in bringing William Saliba to the club and are reportedly preparing a €30 million offer for the Arsenal defender.
According to Jeunes Footeux, West Ham United are plotting a shock €30 million move for William Saliba, although it’s doubtful Arsenal would sell the defender to their London rivals. He also has considerable interest from other sides, but the Gunners have for with the centre-back.
William Saliba has been one of the curious and puzzling transfer stories in recent years. He was signed as an 18-year-old during Unai Emery and Raul Sanhelli’s regime, after impressing at Saint-Etienne. Arsenal paid £27 million in 2019, but the defender is yet to make a single senior appearance for the Gunners.
In his two and a half years at the club, Saliba has spent time out on loan in Ligue 1, with Saint-Etienne, Nice and this season at Marseille. He has been a key figure in central defence at the French club, and to some degree, Mikel Arteta and Edu Gaspar have been praised for their decision to send Saliba away to France.
Recently, there have been rumours circulating that Saliba could be attracting interest from elsewhere, with Real Madrid also in the picture for the Frenchman. There have been stories suggesting he may not have a future at Arsenal, considering his lack of integration within the squad under Mikel Arteta so far.
West Ham United are also supposedly in the race for the 20-year-old and are plotting a €30 million move for the centre-back. David Moyes is still in the market for a long-term option at the back and would ideally like Saliba as a replacement for veteran star Angelo Ogbonna.
Moyes has been searching for a long-term partner for Kurt Zouma, although West Ham may find it difficult to convince Arsenal over a move. The Gunners have already rejected the idea of having a conversation with Marseille after the French side opened talks over making Saliba’s loan move permanent.
Arsenal are reportedly considering offering Saliba a new contract alongside manager Arteta, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli in the summer. If true, this indicates the Spanish manager is finally thinking about the Frenchman in his long-term plans at the club.
Moreover, the €30 million figure is seemingly less than what Arsenal paid for Saliba in 2018. In the scenario the Gunners decide to sell the 20-year-old, they would want substantially more than the figure mentioned, considering the player has a contract until 2024.
It is difficult to see Arsenal selling one of their top prospects to a London rival and a club challenging them for a top-four place. If Arteta gets his way, we can see Saliba will play at the club for years to come and become a key part of the Gunners backline in the long run.
