William Saliba compared ‘class’ Arsenal defender to a sports car, now Mikel Arteta wants to sell him

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Arsenal are expected to trim their squad this summer before bringing in new acquisitions.

Arsenal released twenty players at the end of their contracts at the Emirates Stadium, including first-team stars Jorginho and Kieran Tierney.

Tierney has joined Celtic after spending six years at Arsenal, whilst Raheem Sterling also returned to his parent club Chelsea after an unsuccessful loan spell.

Andrea Berta is hoping to bring in a number of attacking options this window and has begun to clear the decks with Nuno Tavares becoming Berta’s first sale.

William Saliba is a player that the Gunners are hoping to keep and tie down to a new contract but he once heaped huge praise on a fellow teammate that Mikel Arteta is now willing to depart the club.

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William Saliba compared Oleksandr Zinchenko to a sports car

Speaking to Prime Video Sport back in 2023, Saliba was asked to compare a number of his Arsenal teammates to sports cars after being referred to as a ‘Rolls Royce’ himself.

Saliba claimed Bukayo Saka was a Lamborghini because of his speed and compared Gabriel Martinelli to an Audi RS6 for the same reason.

However, when asked about Oleksandr Zinchenko, the French international gave an answer which indicated his admiration for the defender.

Saliba stated: “Zinchenko…what car I can give him?! Class G – the G-Wagon – Mercedes, the big one because he’s class with the ball, so elegant as well. He’s good.”

Borussia Dortmund were interested in Zinchenko back in January and it is expected that the Ukrainian international will leave the club this summer given his lack of first-team opportunities this season.

Oleksandr Zinchenko could help Arsenal land transfer target

It was expected that Arsenal would struggle to sell Zinchenko this summer given his lucrative contract at the Gunners.

However, AC Milan are interested in Zinchenko and he could be used in a deal to land one of Berta’s transfer targets.

Rafael Leao has been linked with Arsenal but his asking price of £84m could be a stumbling block in any pursuit for the winger.

Zinchenko moving the other way as part of the deal could cut the price and make the fee more affordable for Arsenal, it is certainly a deal to keep an eye on this transfer window.