Mikel Arteta explains why he is ‘fed up’ with ‘painful’ William Saliba situation at Arsenal and hints at January move

Mikel Arteta admits he is fed up with the situation surrounding William Saliba at Arsenal.

The 19-year-old signed for the Gunners from Saint-Etienne in the summer of 2019, before being sent back on loan to the French club, but last season did not go as planned.

Due to a combination of injuries and the coronavirus pandemic, Saliba only played 17 times, meaning it wasn’t the campaign Arsenal had hoped for.

Upon his return to the Gunners, it became clear the defender needed another year to transition before turning out for Arteta’s side, but various loan moves fell through.

Saint-Etienne lashed out by accusing Arsenal of failing to keep their promise to send him back to France on Deadline Day, which the Gunners denied, while numerous loan agreements with Championship clubs collapsed.

All of that leaves Saliba at a club he is not ready to be part of, which is why he wasn’t selected for the Europa League squad and hasn’t played a minute for Arsenal this season.

It must be frustrating for the Frenchman, and Gunners boss Arteta shares those frustrations.

Speaking ahead of the Europa League clash with Molde on Thursday, the Spaniard said: “I’m fed up with the situation because, as you could see, we tried to find a way in the last few days to give him some football.

“I explained that he needed that transition year when we decided to buy him and send him on loan to Saint-Etienne. For many reasons, that didn’t happen – he didn’t have that transition year and he needs to go through that.

“At the moment, with the amount of central defenders we have in the team, we had to leave him out of the squad, which is painful. Now we have some injuries and we could have used him but this is part of the profession.”

While Saliba will remain an Arsenal player for the rest of 2020, Arteta hints at a January move for the teenager.

“We certainly tried in the last few days of the transfer window to find the right club but we could not,” he added.

“We will review the situation in the next few weeks and sit down with him and see what is the best thing to do. But it will depend on him and other players’ situations as well.”