Arsenal: William Saliba must be special, not just a smart deal

This week, Arsenal agreed to a smart deal involving Saint Etienne centre-back William Saliba. But for however clever the transfer may be, ultimately, its success comes down to Saliba being special.

When it was first announced that cash-strapped Arsenal were about to invest over £25 million in a player who they could not use for a year, many were a little baffled by the decision. ‘The Gunners need help now,’ was the general line of thinking. Spending so much seemed a little foolish, at least from one point of view.

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However, as the deal for Saint Etienne defender William Saliba unfolded, it was unveiled that the transfer would be structured in quite a clever manner.

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Saliba would be sent back to the Ligue 1 club on a year-long loan, as was demanded from the very first moment that contact between the two clubs was initiated, but the approximate £26.5 million transfer fee would be paid over a series of years, much of it pushed into the seasons in which Arsenal would actually receiving the benefit of his services. Thus, there was a limited upfront fee, freeing Unai Emery to spend at other needy positions this summer.

It is a smart workaround. Saliba was a clear target of Emery and head of football Raul Sanllehi, and they wanted him this summer, not next. But St. Etienne were indignant that the 18-year-old would remain with them for one more year, either via a loan clause inserted into a sale or by simply not selling in the first place. In the end, Arsenal complied, and did so with destroying their budget.

The deal has largely been praised. Clever, out-of-the-box thinking has led to a smart structure that benefits all parties while still ensuring that Saliba will one day make a north London transfer. But while that is all true, ultimately, the success of this deal will not depend on how smart the payment structures are or are not.

It may sound a little simplistic to say, but Saliba must be special for this deal to be a successful one. That, I understand, is obvious. You cannot make good signings without signing good players. But sometimes, in the ever scrutinised modern game that focuses so intensely on the details and debates so inexorably the efficiencies and small margins, which are important, we can forget the more simple truths.

Saliba is not coming cheap. Even in the modern market where some defenders are going for £70-80 million, spending nearly £30 million on a teenager thrusts undeniable expectations upon his career. Given the price, and the urgency with which they will sign him, Arsenal unquestionably expect Saliba to a world-class centre-back. Anything less than that would be a disappointment.

Whether Saliba is as special as Emery, Sanllehi and the Arsenal recruitment staff believe, time will, of course, tell. But for all the praise the cleverness of the deal has received, ultimately, its success comes down to the quality of Saliba. Is he actually any good? That, as always, is the golden question.