A number of Arsenal players have already impressed at Euro 2024.
The Gunners have nine players from their club representing their respective countries at the European Championships this summer.
That is a big number, and so far, almost every Arsenal player has had a good start to the tournament.
One player, in particular, was really good for his country after getting the nod to start. Gabriel Magalhaes and former Arsenal target Yann M’Vila have sent him messages after watching him play.
Yann M’Vila and Gabriel Magalhaes react to William Saliba’s performance for France
Not many people expected William Saliba to be a starter for France in the weeks leading up to Euro 2024.
Didier Deschamps had previously made it clear that there are flaws in the Arsenal defender’s game that he’s not a fan of.
Liverpool star Ibrahima Konate was expected to get the nod instead alongside Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano in France’s opener against Austria.
However, Deschamps changed his mind and picked Saliba instead of the Liverpool man, and that proved to be the right decision in the end.
Saliba earned a lot of praise for his performance from the French media after producing some really impressive moments at the back for Les Bleus.
It looks like he has done enough to keep his place when France take on the Netherlands next.
A day after France’s win against Austria, Saliba took to Instagram to celebrate the three points. His good pal from Arsenal, Gabriel, showed him some love by replying with a heart emoji.
One-time Arsenal target and former France international M’Vila wrote: “The boss, always a pleasure to see you at work!”
READ MORE: Kylian Mbappe shares what he really thinks about Arsenal star William Saliba
Saliba did one thing at Euro 2024 that France boss Deschamps did not like
Saliba was asked to start on the left side of central defence against Austria in France’s Euro 2024 opener.
The £27 million (Goal) Arsenal man has played there before, during his loan spell at Marseille, but in the two seasons where he has been a regular at the Emirates, he has almost always been deployed on the right side.
That probably complicated things a bit for Saliba, who despite being solid for most of the game, almost made a meal of a clearance in the first half.
His attempted over-the-shoulder volley went straight to an Austrian player, and that could have proved to be costly. Thankfully, France dealt with the danger.
Saliba’s partner Upamecano too had a couple of shaky moments while clearing the ball, and France boss Deschamps wasn’t too pleased with that aspect of his defenders’ game.
So, in his post-match press conference, he claimed that Saliba and Upamecano must improve their clearances.
“They (Saliba and Upamecano) have this ability to be very solid in one-on-one [situations], even if there were some clearances that they could improve on, they exuded a lot of strength and calmness,” he said after the game.