Former France international, William Gallas, has played down praise heaped on William Saliba and named four defenders in the Premier League who he thinks are better than the Arsenal star.
Saliba has been a revelation for the Gunners since breaking into their team at the start of the 2022-23 campaign after three successive years out on loan.
However, Gallas has insisted Saliba is not yet at the top level.
“Let’s calm down about William Saliba! That’s a problem with the modern media, and discussion like this isn’t good for the players. Some of them can’t deal with that pressure.
“Thiago Silva comes to mind when thinking about truly world-class defenders.
“He was great in the past, and he’s great now, even at his age. I also like Josko Gvardiol, and he’s a great example of a player who adapted to a new system straight away.
“There’s also Raphael Varane. He may not be at his best at the moment, but what he’s achieved speaks for itself.
“Virgil Van Dijk is great, too, even if he’s not quite been the same since his injury. He was top-class back then, but he’s making some mistakes now. He’s not perfect, but he’s still very good.
“I’d say those are the world-class defenders I can think of,” Gallas told Lord Ping.