Arsenal have got van Dijk and Varane in Saliba, says Vannuchi

Arsenal new signing William Saliba has been likend to the combination of Virgil van Dijk and Raphael Varane by his former coach.

The 19-year-old defender was signed last season for £27m and sent back to Saint-Etienne on a season long loan to further continue his development.

Where has furthur improved in all aspect of the game and looked ready for the Premier League challenge this season.

And William Saliba’s previous manager at France under-18 level, Jean-Luc Vannuchi has labelled him a monster.

‘A mix of the two styles,’ Vannuchi told the Telegraph.

‘With Varane because of his speed and power, and with Van Dijk it is the interceptions, the positioning on the pitch.

‘My first impression was that this was the biggest man of his generation.

‘On the pitch, he is a competitor. A technical and physical leader.

‘As a person he is more reserved but all the other players respected him because he was the very best defender at that age.

‘He looked like a man. The difference between him and the other players was massive. When he took the ball and ran into midfield, no one could stop him. He was like a monster compared to other players of the same age.

‘He is something different to what I have worked with before. When he played with Saint-Etienne it looked normal for him, even though he was so young. You never saw any difference between him and the older men around him.’