William Gallas names FOUR EPL defenders who are better than William Saliba

Former France star William Gallas has played down praise received by William Saliba and named four Premier League defenders who he thinks are better than the Arsenal man.

Saliba has been a revelation for the Gunners ever since breaking into their team at the start of the 2022-23 campaign after spending three successive years out on loan.

He was instrumental in their title push last season as he started their first 27 matches before a back injury coincided with Mikel Arteta's side picking up just 18 points from their final 11 games as they were ultimately pipped to the Premier League by Man City.

However, Gallas - who played for Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham in his career and also won 84 caps for France - claimed Saliba is not yet at the top level.

'Let’s calm down about William Saliba!’ Gallas told Lord Ping. ‘That’s a problem with the modern media, and discussion like this isn’t good for the players. Some of them can’t deal with that pressure.

‘I like Saliba, and I think he’s a really good player, but as far as I’m concerned, the best defenders in the world have to play in their national teams and be a constant in their starting XI.

‘Saliba isn’t a starter for France yet, but when he’s in the line-up and he’s performing as well as he does at club level, then we can discuss him being the world’s best defender.

'At the moment, he could be one of the best defenders in Europe. There’s a difference!’

Saliba made his debut for France in March last year and has since gone onto win 10 caps for Les Bleus.

He was part of their World Cup squad in Qatar but played just 27 minutes as he remains a largely peripheral figure in the national team.

And along with a need to become a regular for Didier Deschamps' side, Gallas also felt there are