William Saliba called ‘stupid’ as French media react to France’s draw with Iceland

Add as preferred source on Google

Arsenal centre-back William Saliba was involved in France’s dramatic 2-2 draw with Iceland.

Mikel Arteta will be delighted that Saliba will make his way back to Arsenal safely, having completed his duty over the October break.

After Saliba had a comfortable outing against Azerbaijan, the defender had less of a routine visit against Iceland.

Goals from Christopher Nkuku and Jean-Philippe Mateta weren’t enough to earn France the win, as Iceland found the net just two minutes after the Crystal Palace striker gave his country the lead.

Saliba played a part in France’s mishap to concede the equaliser, and the French media made their feelings known.

• READ MORE: Viktor Gyokeres no-shows as Sweden suffer shock 1-0 defeat to Kosovo

French media react to William Saliba’s performance against Iceland

Saliba has few weaknesses to his game, but the 24-year-old did struggle to think rationally after France had taken the lead.

France were completely out of position when Iceland threatened, and Eurosport dubbed Saliba’s role in the equaliser as ‘stupid’. 

“Too high, Saliba was sucked in for the second goal. It’s a shame because he remains very reliable in contact. In short… A stupid mistake with serious consequences.”

RMC shared a similar review of the Arsenal star, stating that he lacked ‘vigilance’ in the moment. 

“Very present in the duels, particularly with his head, he lost the ball and made the mistake which led to the first Icelandic goal, before being lacking vigilance on the second.”

It wasn’t all doom and gloom, however, as Saliba was a top performer on the night besides his mishap, as Le Quotidien du Sport made clear. 

“It’s sad to say, but the Arsenal player was one of the best French players. Even if he got caught in the middle for the Icelanders’ equaliser.”

Footmercato had a different view of the game, applauding Saliba’s performance that, in their eyes, came with no ‘notable errors’. 

“Imperial in the air, he crossed the match without incident, as if on an armchair. A solid performance, without any particular brilliance, but without any notable errors either, just like what we expect from one of the most reliable defenders in the Premier League.”

Saliba’s stats as France draw 2-2 against Iceland

The reviews were mixed, but most merely labelled Saliba’s positioning for the equaliser as a mishap.

Otherwise, it was a strong performance from the centre-back, who contributed to the contest with ten defensive actions.

Saliba was heavily involved in the game with 96 touches on the ball, also completing 94% of his attempted passes.

Most importantly, the 24-year-old will return to Arsenal fit and ready for the domestic action to resume, in what is set to be a busy time for the squad back in N5.