The presence of William Saliba, Ben White and Gabriel Magalhaes in the Arsenal first-team squad next season is an exciting prospect but one which brings problems regarding selection for Mikel Arteta.
The Spaniard has preferred to set Arsenal up with a back four system this season. White and Gabriel have been flanked by Takehiro Tomiyasu and one of either Kieran Tierney or Nuno Tavares. Aaron Ramsdale's introduction to the back five has also drastically improved solidity.
The left-back position has impressed and the Portuguese’s introduction demonstrated the importance of depth in the full-back role. The quality of the 21-year-old has shone but raised concerns regarding the right-back’s strength in depth.
Cedric Soares, Calum Chambers and the on-loan Hector Bellerin have produced some good performances but consistency has been the issue and a reluctance to rely upon them for the long-term will likely see their Arsenal careers end in the near future.
Saliba however has impressed on a consistent basis bar a couple of expectant mistakes from a player of his young age.
Jorge Sampaoli has used him both as a right centre-half in a back three and back four. However, the match against Metz, in which the Frenchman kept another clean sheet, saw him play In a completely new role.
The Chilean coach pushed Saliba into the right-back position for the second half as shown in the below heat map. Saliba is a characteristically adventurous defender and took to the role seamlessly.
He completed 100% of his dribbles and put three crosses into the box. He was unfortunately not influential enough to help Marseille break the deadlock, but it did bring forth possibilities.
The Arsenal Way has previously highlighted how Arsenal technical director Edu can save a significant amount of money in the summer by promoting from within to support Tomiyasu at right-back.
Ryan Alebiosu has impressed at right wing-back for Kevin Betsy’s under 23s squad and could push for a senior call-up in the next 12 months.
Saliba’s showing in the full-back role could prompt Edu into a similar assessment ahead of the summer. Selling on the surplus right-backs for a considerable amount to reinvest elsewhere whilst putting faith in the club’s current crop.
Seeing so much progression from players both in and outside of the first team will only be a big plus for Mikel Arteta and Edu. The current campaign is raising eyebrows but it is tricky not to get excited about the future with so many quality youngsters.
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