Arsenal defender William Saliba is poised to miss much of the club's preseason after being selected for France's squad for the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer. The 20-year-old, yet to make a first-team appearance for the Gunners, spent the second half of last season on loan at Ligue 1 side Nice.
Signed under Unai Emery in July 2019, Saliba was immediately loaned back to former club Saint-Etienne before joining Arsenal last summer. However, he failed to break into Mikel Arteta's immediate plans. His involvement in preseason will now be limited, with the Olympic football tournament running from July 21 to August 7.
Arsenal begin their preseason campaign with a friendly against Hibernian on July 13 and open the Premier League season at Brentford on August 13. While clubs are not obliged to release players for the Olympics under FIFA rules—Liverpool, for example, blocked Ibrahima Konate's call-up—Arsenal have granted permission for Saliba to join the France squad.
As a result, Arteta will be without Saliba and fellow defender Gabriel, who has been selected for Brazil, for key preparations ahead of the new season.
