Willaim Saliba, Saint-Etienne on loan from Arsenal (Photo by NICOLAS TUCAT/AFP via Getty Images)
These 3 young Arsenal stars are ready to start…
Obviously, the ideal situation is that Arsenal strengthens in the transfer window this summer. This is what all fans want to see. However, unfortunately, we are not living in this ideal world at the moment, and the transfer market is bound to be negatively impacted by the Coronavirus outbreak.
That said, it’s not the end of the world if Arsenal struggles to sign players this summer because here are 3 young players that could step up to the mark…
3. William Saliba
William Saliba could end up being one of Arsenal’s most important players next season as he returns from his loan spell to North London, where he will make his first Premier League appearance.
With David Luiz rumoured to be on the way out and Sokratis Papastathopoulos ageing, Shkodran Mustafi needs a defensive partner to continue the immense progress under Mikel Arteta. While this could just as easily be Calum Chambers, Saliba has shown the potential in Ligue 1 to be a sure-starter for the Gunners.
He is a brute defender and his frame is frightening for someone of his age. Ageing at just 19 years old, he was one of Ligue 1’s best and most efficient defenders this season, so he is surely ready to start under Mikel Arteta.
William Saliba</a> could end up being one of Arsenal’s most important players next season as he returns from his loan spell to North London, where he will make his first Premier League appearance.</p>
<p>With <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/c0e27d1a/David-Luiz?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">David Luiz</a> rumoured to be on the way out and <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/b682dcf6/Sokratis-Papastathopoulos?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Sokratis Papastathopoulos</a> ageing, <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/3f2d59fe/Shkodran-Mustafi?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Shkodran Mustafi</a> needs a defensive partner to continue the immense progress under <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/d934d1e6/Mikel-Arteta?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Mikel Arteta</a>. While this could just as easily be <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/dc6f5bdd/Calum-Chambers?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Calum Chambers</a>, Saliba has shown the potential in Ligue 1 to be a sure-starter for the Gunners.</p>
<p>He is a brute defender and his frame is frightening for someone of his age. Ageing at just 19 years old, he was one of Ligue 1’s best and most efficient defenders this season, so he is surely ready to start under Mikel Arteta.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #0" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. Gabriel Martinelli </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-480260" src=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fplayingfor90.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2016%2F04%2F1198214958-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">Gabriel Martinelli, Arsenal (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>2. Gabriel Martinelli</h3>
<p>Gabriel Martinelli is one of the safer bets for Arsenal since the fans are already familiar with him starting matches. While most of his performances came from the substitutes’ bench this season, he did start a total of 15 games across all competitions this season, scoring an astonishing 10 goals and providing two assists in the process.</p>
<p>Martinelli is a proven goal-scorer and having scored against big clubs such as Chelsea and Liverpool, he is certainly Premier League-proven. Martinelli’s involvement in the starting XI will only sky-rocket if <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/d5dd5f1f/Pierre-Emerick-Aubameyang?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang</a> is sold, which is one of the positives of losing the Gabon international.</p>
<p>Martinelli primarily plays as a wide-player as this tends to be his favoured position, however, he can play more centrally if need be. Either way, he likes to cut inside and get himself in goal-scoring positions anyway.</p>
<p>Arteta is a known fan of Martinelli’s work and so are the fans. He is very success-hungry which is an amazing quality to have at his age, especially considering most young players nowadays are only interested in the partying lifestyle and accumulating Instagram followers.</p>
<p>Martinelli will likely feature a lot next season anyway as he continues to mature, ageing at 18 years old. However, a lack of signings in the summer transfer window could see the young Brazilian lead the Gunners frontline by storm.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #0" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 1. Bukayo Saka </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-479195" src=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fplayingfor90.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2016%2F04%2F1209146077-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">Bukayo Saka, Arsenal (Photo by Chloe Knott – Danehouse/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>1. Bukayo Saka</h3>
<p><a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/bc7dc64d/Bukayo-Saka?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22>Bukayo Saka</a> goes without saying. Those who follow my articles closely will know that I’m a huge advocate of the young Englishman and I will argue with anyone who thinks prime <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/6a3aaf62/Roberto-Carlos?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Roberto Carlos</a> is even close to his level. I’m joking, of course, or am I?</p>
<p>Bukayo Saka was a sure-starter throughout the second half of this season it will surely remain the same next season. However, as <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/fce2302c/Kieran-Tierney?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Kieran Tierney</a> nears his return from injury and Arteta expecting big things of him, Saka could return to his more natural position on the wing.</p>
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<p>This can only mean good things for Saka, although he rarely looked out of place at full-back. He filled in a position of need expertly, which will give him extra brownie points from the boss in his plea to start next season.</p>
<p>Saka is a rapid wide-player who is able to beat his opposing full-back with ease. He likes to overlap when he is playing deeper and his time as a full-back has improved his defensive abilities. He is a creative player, which is perhaps his best trait since he is known to play pinpoint crosses to match the runs of his attackers.</p>
<p>Ageing at 18 years old, Saka provided an impressive eight assists across all competitions, while scoring three himself. With the Euros coming up in the summer of 2021, Saka will hope to continue his strong run in the Arsenal XI in order to get a call-up from <a href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://fbref.com/en/players/a29c3ed6/Gareth-Southgate?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Gareth Southgate</a>, which Arsenal must respect and try to help with as much as possible.</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="3 Sead Kolasinac replacements" data-url="https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-left-back-replace-sead-kolasinac/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #0" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/30/arsenal-3-young-players-next-season/"https://playingfor90.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-left-back-replace-sead-kolasinac/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> 3 Sead Kolasinac replacements </a> </div>
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<p>Which young player are you most excited to see returning to action?</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">