Comparing Arsenal’s record with and without William Saliba in 22-23

Ben Stewart • 12 May 2023

Arsenal will have to cope with without William Saliba for the remainder of the season as the French defender is now set to miss the rest of the Gunners campaign.

The 22-year-old hasn’t had the typical career trajectory since signing for Arsenal in 2019, but he is now an established star in Mikel Arteta’s side.

Saliba spent his first three years at Arsenal out on loan. Having spells with Saint-Etienne, Nice and Marseille he continued to hone his craft while playing in Ligue 1.

He patiently waited for his Arsenal debut, but boy has he taken his chance since. The 22-year-old has been one of the best defenders in the Premier League this season and still has an abundance of potential.

“The first two sessions we looked at him, we went ‘there’s huge potential here’,” Arteta told reporters via GOAL. “The way he settled, the way he started to get his role around his team-mates and the way he played in pre-season.

“He took out every question mark that we could have with him and gave us all the reasons to play him. He’s been exceptional since that day.

“For the first week I didn’t speak to him. I just wanted to see – naturally, without me really interfering in his thoughts – how he was. Because then you can understand the real him and after that I spoke to him.

“His attitude,” the Arsenal manager added. “The way he came in and said ‘I’m going to prove that I’m very good and I deserve to be here.'”

The 22-year-old has been a vital player for the Gunners and they have desperately missed him since he picked up an injury against Sporting CP in March.

David Ornstein of The Athletic recently confirmed that Saliba will miss the remainder of the season as the French defender has struggled to recover from a back injury.

Since picking up the injury, Rob Holding has filled in at the back. Saliba’s absence from the side has coincided with a dip in form which has seen the Gunners slip to second in the table.

We’ve gone ahead and crunched the numbers to see just how Arsenal’s record looks this season with and without Saliba in the starting line-up.

With William Saliba starting

Played: 32
Won: 22
Drawn: 5
Lost: 5

Goals for: 67
Goals per game: 2.09
Goals against: 33
Goals against per game: 1.03

Points per game (Premier League): 2.22 (2.44)
Win rate: 68.75%
Loss rate: 15.63%

🚀 The goal
😱 The reaction

Believe it yet, Alex? 😉 #BOUARS pic.twitter.com/w8jSGdvua8

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 21, 2022

Without William Saliba starting

Played: 14
Won: 9
Drawn: 3
Lost: 2

Goals for: 31
Goals per game: 2.21
Goals against: 16
Goals against per game: 1.14

Points per game (Premier League): 2.14 (1.88)
Win rate: 64.3%
Loss rate: 14.3%

TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every player to score one PL goal for Arsenal?

William Saliba Quick Reads Arsenal