Arsenal star William Saliba makes Trent Alexander-Arnold claim when explaining Real Madrid snub

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When you finish second and you go on holiday, it's not so good."The frustration of missing out on the Premier League title in each of the past three seasons is not the only anger Saliba has experienced since joining Arsenal from Saint-Etienne in 2019.Saliba admits he was aggrieved to be sent out on loan to Nice in January 2021 - the second of three respective loan spells in his homeland - before his big breakthrough campaign in 2022.The centre-back conceded he was sceptical whether he'd ever make the grade in north London, adding: "I arrived in 2020 and didn't play for six months, I then went on loan and of course, sometimes you have doubts. I thought 'maybe I'll never play for this club' but in the end, I told myself that I couldn't leave without playing."I was training and playing with the U21s and at the end of December, the club told me that it was better for me to go on loan rather than stay here and not play."I was angry because I needed to play but I didn't give up, I went on loan, played games, came back here and started almost every game.

For me, he was like a class player to watch, obviously he's French so when you're a French player and you play in a big club like Arsenal, I was following the team and him. I remember some clips, I was a bit young, so I don't have a lot of memories but I have this final against Barcelona when they almost won the Champions League in 2006."His passion for the club runs deep and that is precisely why he had no interest in fielding calls from Real Madrid or any other interested parties.

"I knew that I wanted to stay here for more years, so I was not really focused on the other clubs. So I'm happy to be here and to sign a new deal."Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta insists he's aware he's under pressure to deliver this season, stating: "Well I'm aware the moment I step in this chair that what I want with this club is to win major trophies, nobody else has to put that line into us, that's the ambition the first day and the excuses have never been part of my life."Join our new WhatsApp community!