Arsenal defender William Saliba has admitted that he was tempted by tempted by the prospect of a move to Real Madrid. Los Blancos were interested in the Frenchman to become the face of their backline for the next decade, alongside Dean Huijsen.
Saliba had been linked to Real Madrid for around 18 months, with reports coming from the Spanish capital describing him as the ‘Jude Bellingham of defenders’ in the eyes of Real Madrid. However Saliba signed a new deal with Arsenal until 2030 in September, all but ending their interest in him.
Saliba admits Real Madrid interest
The 24-year-old has now committed his future to the Gunners, but Saliba admitted that the prospect of playing at the Santiago Bernabeu was an attractive one.
“Of course it’s really tempting when a club like that is interested in you… but I wanted to win titles at Arsenal first before thinking about anything else,” he told MD.
Real Madrid now looking into alternatives at the back
Saliba was supposed to be part of the refresh at the back for Los Blancos, which began this summer with €120m spent on their defence. That was with Trent Alexander-Arnold arriving on a cut-price €10m deal, while Alvaro Carreras and Dean Huijsen saw Real Madrid activate their release clauses of €50m and €60m respectively.
Nonetheless, with David Alaba and Antonio Rudiger out of contract next summer, Real Madrid are expected to make a move for another central defender next year. With Saliba scratched from their shortlist, Ibrahima Konate of Liverpool is thought to be top of their priorities now. Konate is out of contract in the summer, making him a potentially economic deal. Diario AS say that Real Madrid plan to observe him closely in their Champions League clash on Tuesday night with Liverpool at Anfield.
