Arsenal and William Saliba: Centre-back surplus necessitates sales

With William Saliba arriving in the summer, Arsenal’s centre-back position will transform from a place of weakness to a position of extreme surplus. And that necessitates major sales.

When William Saliba arrives in June, Arsenal will have seven centre-backs in the squad, each of whom have their own problems. That number will be eight if they keep Pablo Mari. That’s far too many, especially considering some of them aren’t ready to feature. The club needs to address this looming surplus, and fast.

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There are two categories into which their veritable army of central defenders can insert themselves at the moment. There is a central corps of defenders who play regularly and another group that is challenging for depth and reserve minutes. And while this dichotomy is normal at most clubs, the Gunners’ situation is rather troubling.

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David Luiz, Sokratis, and Calum Chambers — before his injury — all fit into the first category. They are the defenders most trusted by the club and Mikel Arteta. But the depth options are a little more unconvincing. Rob Holding is still rusty after rupturing his ACL,  Pablo Mari is almost entirely unproven, and seeing Shkodran Mustafi anywhere near a lineup gives me a headache, regardless of how he plays. But because of a series of injuries, suspensions, and illnesses among the top defenders, this trio will be relied upon throughout the season.

The impending arrival of William Saliba throws that whole structure out of whack. He will be 19 by the time he arrives in north London and is looking more and more likely to be a ready-made starter. While he is not the saviour of the defence, he will certainly provide a starting option for Arteta.

For reference, Saint-Etienne have not lost this season while Saliba has played. In his eight games, they have won five and drawn three. Best of all, they kept five clean sheets and only conceded four goals. In comparison, they have won six, drawn five, and lost 12 of the 23 games they have played without him, conceding 41 goals and keeping one clean sheet. Despite his minimal playing time, those are incredibly telling numbers.

So what does all this mean? Sales are incumbent. Arsenal won’t succeed otherwise. No professional team should ever have seven centre-backs, let alone eight, in their squad. That’s a waste of space, wages, and resources. Arsenal need to sell.

But who leaves? Who are they better off without? There are some obvious answers to that question, the first being Mustafi. It doesn’t matter if he goes for £5 million or £25 million. He needs to leave.

The second sale that should be conducted this summer is Dinos Mavropanos. He has not brought enough to the club and, at 22, can still fetch a decent price; the Greek is still a promising prospect and, for a team that will play him regularly, he has the potential to be a valuable asset. North London just isn’t the best place for him.

Then the decisions get a little more difficult. Two veterans the wrong side of 30, Sokratis and Luiz. One must go. Sokratis is a year younger and a better defender, but Luiz has impressed under Arteta with his distribution skills coming to the fore. Because of that, he should be the one to stay, for one more year.

And that leaves Arsenal with four ready centre-backs: Holding, who should have improved by that point; Chambers, who will be on the mend; Luiz, from whom we know what to expect; and Saliba, the new boy who is looking more and more fantastic by the day. And finally, there is new signing Mari, who Arsenal will have the chance to sign permanently in the summer. Should the Spaniard prove he is Premier League quality, ushering him into the squad as the fifth-choice option is quite alright.

And, in the event that they sign someone in the summer, Arsenal will have a fantastic backline, and may even be able to sell someone for a more significant return, like Holding or Chambers who may see their playing time diminish as a result.

But for now, the club needs to root out the deadwood. Out with the old, in with the new and William Saliba. The looming centre-back firesale is here, and that is no bad thing.