‘Marseille is better, I promise you!’: Arsenal defender William Saliba says Tottenham’s atmosphere cannot compete with his former club and claims the Gunners feel ‘no pressure’ after their victory at Spurs sent them eight points clear
- Arsenal’s French defender admits he has played in more daunting stadiums
- While admitting it was a ‘big atmosphere’, Saliba believes it can’t beat Marseille
- The 21-year-old and the rest of the Arsenal defence were impenetrable v Spurs
- The Gunners’ 2-0 victory against rivals Tottenham put them eight points clear
Arsenal defender William Saliba believes the raucous atmosphere inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday cannot compare to that of former club Marseille.
The French centre-back was once again imperious as an impenetrable Arsenal defence held firm in a comfortable 2-0 north London derby win.
Despite a baying Tottenham crowd urging their team to disrupt their rivals’ title charge, Saliba and his Gunners team-mates remained unfazed.
Arsenal defender William Saliba wasn’t overawed by the hostile atmosphere at Tottenham
‘No, Marseille is better,’ Saliba said post-match, when asked to compare the two.
‘I promise you it is much better! But it was a big atmosphere today as well and I was prepared for this game.’
It was an expectedly frosty reception for the Gunners, with Aaron Ramsdale receiving the brunt of Spurs supporters’ anger after a fan jumped a barrier and kicked the star goalkeeper.
Saliba played on loan for Marseille during the 2021-22 – a decision which proved to be a masterstroke by Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta.
He was named Marseille’s Young Player of the Year and has brought that form back to the Emirates, starting in every Premier League fixture so far this season.
The Spurs crowd were baying for a victory to disrupt the Gunners’ Premier League title charge
Sunday’s scintillating victory put Arsenal eight points clear of nearest challengers Manchester City.
‘There’s no pressure because we play for that,’ Saliba added. ‘It’s better to have this pressure when you are at the top than when you are down at the bottom. It’s better to keep going like this and we don’t have to have pressure.
‘When I came here of course we wanted to be in the lead, but I didn’t imagine we are where we are in January.
‘But after the summer, when I saw the team and the mentality, I tell myself: “Yeah, we can do something this season”‘.
Saliba’s former side, French team Marseille, are famous for their often intimidating atmosphere
Arsenal face another tough task in their next Premier League outing as they host Manchester United, who beat rivals Man City 2-1 on Saturday and will look to cut the Gunners’ lead at the top.
‘It’s never enough,’ Saliba said of Arsenal’s eight-point advantage. ‘We know we have a lot of games to go. We have to be focused because things can change quickly.
‘If we lose one game, after we can have no confidence, so we have to be focused on keeping going and trying to win. We focus on ourselves.’
Arsenal disposed of their North London rivals with relative ease in a 2-0 victory against Spurs
Saliba and Co are acutely aware of the threat United pose, having beaten the Gunners 3-1 in September.
‘We know we have a big game next week,’ he said. ‘We know they beat us. They are the only team to beat us this season in the Premier League and we want to beat them again at home.
‘We will prepare this game very good I think, and I hope we will win in front of our fans.’
