The French centre-half rose through the ranks of St Etienne before making his first team debut with the Ligue 1 side in 2018. However, Arsenal were quick to notice the 23-year-old's talents, bringing him to the Emirates Stadium the very next year in a £27million move.
However, Saliba's arrival in north London got off to a bit of a rocky start - the star was sent back to St Etienne on a season-long loan in the 2019/20 campaign before he was lent to Nice the following season. He then spent a season with Marseille in 2021/22, before being recalled to Arsenal where he has since settled.
Under Mikel Arteta, the hard-hitting centre-half has made 92 appearances across all competitions and has been a pivotal player in their Premier League title challenges in recent seasons. However, Lazio midfielder Guendouzi - who played with Saliba at Marseille - has cited how the Gunners star, who is now being tracked by Real Madrid, will always have an affinity for the French club.
Speaking to Telefoot in 2022, Guendouzi said: "William has OM now in his heart, and I'm sure he will return to Marseille next season. So I will try to push him again to stay with us." However, a deal between the two sides never quite came to fruition, with Saliba muscling his way into Arteta's squad in the 2022/23 campaign, where he has remained ever since.
The youngster was instrumental in Arsenal's second-place finish that year, as well as the club's mirror-image finish last season, missing out on Premier League glory to Manchester City by just two points. However, Saliba has previously hinted that he may wish to return to Marseille in the future - admitting in 2022: "It would be my pleasure to come back no matter what.
"It's not as if I know I’m not going to come back, it's Marseille, it's my club." Saliba, who made 36 Ligue 1 appearances with Marseille between 2021 and 2022 to help secure a second-place finish behind French titans Paris Saint-Germain, and Guendouzi were both talking when the defender's Arsenal future was still up in the air and he was yet to play for the Gunners so things have changed since.
Despite being settled with Arteta at the Emirates Stadium - and only recently signing a new deal until 2027 - rumour has it that Real Madrid could be looking to take him to the Bernabeu next year.
Los Blancos were linked with Saliba over the summer, with first-choice Eder Militao suffering from persistent injuries. However, they never made an offer despite also missing out on Leny Yoro to Manchester United.
Saliba, who insisted he wanted to stay and win trophies with Arsenal for many years to come after signing a new deal last year, is now reportedly being chased by Madrid again after Antonio Rudiger heaped praise on the Frenchman and insisted he'd sign him for the Spanish champions if he could.
Guendouzi played with Saliba at Marseille
Guendouzi played with Saliba at Marseille
Saliba, who insisted he wanted to stay and win trophies with Arsenal for many years to come after signing a new deal last year, is now reportedly being chased by Madrid again after Antonio Rudiger heaped praise on the Frenchman and insisted he'd sign him for the Spanish champions if he could.
Mikel Arteta and Edu have no intentions of selling the star and will hope his head won't be turned given his importance to the side as they bid to one better again this season and pip Manchester City to the Premier League title.
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