William Saliba’s Euro 2024 campaign was brought to an end last night as the Arsenal star could not prevent Spain beating France.
In a captivating semi-final contest in Munich, France were ultimately undone by a Spain side who have boasted the most scintillating attacking play throughout the competition.
Arsenal centre-back William Saliba started the match in the heart of the French rearguard, alongside Dayot Upamecano.
Coming into the tournament, Saliba seemed unlikely to feature heavily for France. Whilst he is trusted by Mikel Arteta at the Emirates Stadium, the national team manager Didier Deschamps lacked faith in the 23-year-old.
However, the Arsenal man has been a fixture in the starting XI throughout Euro 2024. Saliba has earned praise for his performances, and has now surely cemented his place in the team for a long time to come.
Arsenal fans will be glad to see the defender getting the exposure on the biggest stage that he deserves. Saliba proved last season that he is a big game player, having shone for the Gunners against elite level opponents on a number of occasions.
However, Saliba will have to wait a while longer yet for his chance to win a major trophy at international level, as he and his compatriots could not keep Spain at bay on Tuesday evening.
National media rate Arsenal star William Saliba after Spain beat France at Euro 2024
In the wake of this defeat, French media outlets were quick to reserve some praise for Saliba.
L’Equipe thought that he was the best player on the pitch for Les Bleus last night, granting him a 6/10 rating, which is generous by that publication’s infamously harsh standards.
They stated: “What should we remember from his match? His header back into the middle towards Olmo? Or his effective bursts into the feet of the Olmo-Morata duo? Both. Attentive, he put impact into his interventions. And cut off a few cross situations, notably in front of Morata. He was, over the duration of the match, the most reliable defender. We probably expect more from him on the first restart.
La Depeche awarded the Arsenal man 5/10, noting: “He narrowly won ahead of Olmo and Cucurella but he made avoidable mistakes. Several times on the verge of cracking, he held firm and still had a great Euro.”
Like L’Equipe, France TV Info felt that the defender was the nation’s best performer on the night, grading him at 7.5/10: “Once again, the central defender was very, very valuable. If Alvaro Morata touched so few balls, Saliba had something to do with it, with numerous interventions to take the ball away from him before he had time to shoot, like in the 12th minute before the Spaniard tried a header. The Arsenal player asserted himself as the boss of the Blues’ defence in this Euro.”
Footmercato gave Saliba 6/10 for his display and said: “Exceptional during this Euro, he was pretty good tonight too. A few approximations it’s true, like his header on Olmo for the second Spanish goal, but also some good interventions in front of Alvaro Morata for example. He cleared several dangerous balls in his area and was generally pretty clean with the ball.”
What next for Saliba after Euro 2024 exit?
Saliba will now enjoy a well-earned rest before returning to Arsenal during pre-season. He can look back upon his Euro 2024 performances with pride, albeit he will be disappointed that France couldn’t go all the way to glory.
In any case, Arteta will be hoping that he has gained confidence from the whole experience, as he will be a key player for the Gunners once again in the upcoming campaign.
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