Arsenal’s William Saliba will not have surgery on back injury, out for ‘extended period’; John Stones a target
Arsenal’s William Saliba will not have surgery on a back injury and will have an “extended period” on the sidelines, the club has confirmed.
The 25-year-old defender was substituted after half an hour of France’s 2-0 World Cup semi-final defeat to Spain, having started in all bar one match at the tournament.
The defender went down in a seemingly innocuous moment, kicked the ball out of play and called for medical attention.
Partly as a consequence of Saliba’s situation, Arsenal are in the market for a central defender this summer.
England defender John Stones, who left Manchester City last month when his contract ended, is among the targets.
Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa, as reported in the Transfer DealSheet, is also of interest, though there is a significant gap between Arsenal and Villa’s valuations.
Stones, 32, left City following a decade at the club. He joined City in the same summer as Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, and worked alongside him for three years during the latter’s stint as City assistant manager. The England international made five appearances for his country at the 2026 World Cup, starting three games.
On Saliba’s treatment, a statement from the north London club read: “William Saliba has returned to us from World Cup duty. Subsequent specialist reviews on William’s return to London this week have confirmed that he has suffered a back injury which will require a period of rehabilitation.
“Extensive assessments have concluded that surgery is not recommended, but William should now commence a managed recovery programme.
“William’s rehabilitation will commence immediately, with continual management of his injury, and he is expected to be out of action for an extended period. Everyone is fully focused on supporting William to ensure he is back to full fitness as soon as possible.”
Saliba made 50 appearances for Arsenal last season and started six of France’s World Cup games, only rested for their final group-stage game against Norway.
The centre-back played the third-most minutes of any Arsenal outfield player last season and had been dealing with a back issue heading into the tournament.
“I’ve had some minor niggles for several months,” he said before France’s group game against Iraq, per France 24. “I’ve been gritting my teeth because there was the Champions League and the Premier League. But the coaching staff are handling it very well.”
Arsenal begin their defence of the Premier League title against Coventry City on August 21.
