Arsenal defender William Saliba started for France in their 2-0 win over Belgium in the Nations League.
Les Bleus went into the game under a lot of pressure after losing each of their last two international fixtures. Fans were not happy to the point that Didier Deschamps, the man who won the World Cup as a player and manager, was booed before the game.
France had a really poor start on Monday night. Belgium were all over them and should’ve scored a couple of goals as well.
However, Saliba and co held on, took a couple of their chances in attack, and managed to come away with a 2-0 win to end their losing run.
French media react to Arsenal star William Saliba’s performance vs Belgium
Saliba is one of the best defenders in the world.
The Frenchman has been amazing for Arsenal for over two years now, and his performances for his country have mostly been good too.
However, against Italy in their previous game, Saliba came under a lot of criticism from the French media for his mistake for the Azzurri’s third goal.
There were even a few debates over whether the Arsenal man should start against Belgium, but Deschamps kept his faith and named him in his defence.
Saliba did not disappoint. The Arsenal man was solid for large parts of the game, and he contained Luis Openda really well.
Eurosport in France were so impressed with Saliba’s performance that they branded him as ‘unplayable’ and even called him the ‘boss’.
After giving him a 6.5/10 rating, they wrote: “Openda tried a lot, but he didn’t succeed because Saliba was watching and not just a little.
“Unplayable even when he was a little late starting, he saved a few dangerous situations behind Le Bleus’ defence. Despite a few missed restarts under pressure at the start of the match, he exuded great authority.
“In short… the return of the boss.”
So Foot gave Saliba an 8/10 rating and said: “If Lois Openda was wondering about leaving for the Premier League in the near future, William Saliba took care to give him a glimpse of what his weekends could look like: on the ground, with bloody ankles.”
READ MORE: Ex-Arsenal ace ends Virgil van Dijk vs William Saliba debate with definitive verdict
Saliba’s stats vs Belgium are so impressive
Saliba will be the first one to admit that his performance against Belgium was not his best, but he was still very, very good.
Yes, the Frenchman struggled while playing out from the back on a few occasions early in the game, but he looked more and more confident as the minutes passed.
Saliba had 57 touches of the ball and completed 41 of his 48 attempted passes, maintaining a very healthy 85 per cent passing accuracy.
The Arsenal star also made three clearances, two interceptions and a tackle, and he wasn’t dribbled past once in the entire game (Sofascore).
A solid display from Saliba after a difficult game against Italy last time out. Now, he will fly back to London to prepare for the North London Derby.
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