Kylian Mbappe says Arsenal star is ‘one of the best’ in the Premier League and could start at Euro 2024
'He has become a very important player for Arsenal.'
Kylian Mbappe rates Arsenal star William Saliba as ‘one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League’ and insists he has ‘all the qualities’ to start for France at Euro 2024.
Hugely impressive back-to-back campaigns for the Gunners earned Saliba a place in France’s Euros squad but he remains behind Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano and Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate in Didier Deschamps’ pecking order.
France will bid to win their third European Championship in Germany and continue their superb record at recent major tournaments.
Deschamps’ side won the World Cup in 2018 and reached the final of the last global event in Qatar, a penalty shootout defeat to Lionel Messi’s Argentina preventing them from becoming just the third team to win successive World Cups.
Mbappe went to school with Saliba in the suburbs of Paris and has naturally kept track of his career since they became professionals and says his development at Arsenal has been impressive.
As he regards Saliba as one of the very best defenders in the Premier League, Mbappe is adamant the Gunners star is a potential starter for France, who begin their Euro 2024 campaign on Monday night against Austria.
‘I have known him since he was very, very young,’ Mbappe, who left Paris Saint-Germain to join Real Madrid at the end of the season, told Ouest-France. ‘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.
‘I look at his journey with the pride of an older brother. There is no taboo between us and we tease each other. For example, I often tell him that he wants to be the star of Bondy, but that it will never happen!’
Saliba’s form for Arsenal and his impressive centre-back partnership with Brazilian Gabriel Magalhaes has helped the Gunners challenge for the Premier League title over the last two seasons.
After kick-starting their Euros campaign against Austria, France face Group D rivals Netherlands and Poland as they look to reach the knockout stages.
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Arsenal news, exclusives and analysis
