France superstar Kylian Mbappe has heaped praise on one Arsenal player following his performances in the 2023/24 season.
The Gunners finished second again to Manchester City in the Premier League title race. They fell just two points short of Pep Guardiola‘s side this time.
However, there are still a lot of positives to take for Mikel Arteta. One player’s performances, in particular, were really good – even Mbappe seems impressed.
Kylian Mbappe says William Saliba is one of the best defenders in the Premier League
Mbappe and William Saliba grew up together as kids in Bondy, France. They went to the same primary school at the time.
The Real Madrid star’s father was Saliba’s coach back then, and they played together all the time.
Mbappe is arguably the best player in the world right now. The way he has progressed over the years is nothing short of extraordinary.
Saliba too has made huge strides. The Arsenal defender is a few years younger than Mbappe, but he is probably the best centre-back in the world of his age.
Arsenal fans absolutely love Saliba because of the way he has performed over the last two years.
Mbappe has been keeping an eye on his old pal too, and he has now claimed that Saliba has become one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League.
Speaking to Ouest-France, Mbappe said: “I have known him since he was very, very young. We were in the same primary school in Bondy. We played football together on our breaks, even though we weren’t in the same year, but he asked to play with us. We allowed it because he was already big!
“Then, my dad trained him at AS Bondy. I am three years older than him so I saw him grow up by following his journey and his games closely. Seeing him in the national team, going from Bondy to Les Bleus, made me really happy. I tried to integrate him into the group as quickly as possible
“This season, he has become a very important player for Arsenal and is among the best centre-backs in the Premier League. He is starting to get minutes with us. It’s now up to him to find his place.
“For me, he has all the qualities to, in time, be a starter with Les Bleus.”
France are making a big mistake
After the kind of season Saliba had at Arsenal, it should be a no-brainer to make him France’s first-choice centre-back.
However, Didier Deschamps hasn’t been too impressed with the Saliba.
The France manager, as a result, is expected to start the Euros with Ibrahima Konate and Dayot Upamecano in the heart of his defence.
That, in our opinion, would be a bad mistake.
Yes, Konate and Upamecano are brilliant defenders, but neither of them were nearly as good as Saliba was in the 2023/24 campaign.
We think Saliba deserves to start for France, but it doesn’t look likely at this point.
