{"id":1355810,"date":"2024-06-18T16:00:40","date_gmt":"2024-06-18T15:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?p=1355810"},"modified":"2024-06-18T16:59:45","modified_gmt":"2024-06-18T15:59:45","slug":"william-saliba-didier-deschamps-france-euro-2024","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/news\/william-saliba-didier-deschamps-france-euro-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Didier Deschamps explains reasons behind Arsenal defender William Saliba U-turn decision"},"content":{"rendered":"

Didier Deschamps made no secret about why Arsenal central defender William Saliba struggled to get regular playing time for the French national team.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The most successful head coach in France’s illustrious history revealed earlier this year that Saliba, a guaranteed starter for Mikel Arteta, “does things that I don\u2019t like very much” before emphasising that competition for places also played a role.<\/p>\n

However, things recently changed, with Saliba not only starting in four of France’s last six international matches (the only game he missed was a 0-2 loss to Germany) but also completing the full 90 minutes on all occasions.<\/p>\n

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A strong campaign with the Gunners may have convinced Deschamps, who fielded him in their Euro 2024<\/a> opener against Austria on Monday evening, ahead of Ibrahima Konate, whom many expected to partner Dayot Upamecano.<\/p>\n

“If I played Saliba, it\u2019s because I thought he was more ready than Konate for such a match,” he told reporters.<\/p>\n

“I don\u2019t want to lose anyone either, we will need everyone. They (Saliba and Upamecano) have 120 minutes together for the France national team, it\u2019s not a lot.<\/p>\n

“But they have this ability to be very solid in one-on-one [situations]; even if there were some clearances that they could improve on, they exuded a lot of strength and calmness. We needed that against such an opponent.”<\/p>\n

A blemish on what turned out to be another solid performance was a moment late in the game when a clearance from him rebounded into the path of Patrick Wimmer, but the imperious N\u2019Golo Kant\u00e9, subsequently named Player of the Match, was on hand to clear it up.<\/p>\n

In what could be a sign of things to come, Saliba won possession more than any other player, completing 94% of his passes and winning all his attempted tackles and duels without making a single foul.<\/p>\n

Next up is a meeting with the Netherlands, who also won their opening group match, which means there’s an opportunity for the Dutch or Les Bleus to open up a three-point gap heading into matchday three and effectively secure the top spot.<\/p>\n