Arsenal 'agree William Saliba loan deal with Marseille'

Arsenal and Marseille have reportedly reached an agreement over a one-year loan for defender William Saliba.

The former Saint-Etienne man is yet to make his competitive debut for the Gunners and returned to his native homeland with Nice for the second half of the 2020-21 season.

Saliba immediately became a first-choice centre-back for Les Aiglons and impressed in 20 Ligue 1 appearances, leading to suggestions that he would be given the chance to prove himself in Arsenal's pre-season.

However, The Athletic reports that the Frenchman is now set for his third loan spell away from the club and will spend the 2021-22 campaign under the tutelage of Jorge Sampaoli at Marseille.

The report adds that the deal is a straight loan without an option to buy, contrary to previous rumours, and he remains in Mikel Arteta's long-term plans at Arsenal.

Saliba has featured eight times for Arsenal's Under-23s and previously joked that he felt 'locked up' while struggling to get a look-in under Arteta.