Mikel Arteta believes that William Saliba should stay with Saint-Etienne for their French Cup final against Paris Saint-German before moving to north London.
The young defender signed for us last summer, but stayed in France for a season-long loan until June 30 - and our head coach feels it is beneficial for him to see their domestic season out.
“I think he needs to stay there,” Arteta said. "We've got an agreement with Saint-Etienne and he's been over there all year.
"He has earned his right to play that final if their manager wants to do that. So I think we have to give him the opportunity to do that, to enjoy that and we can have him after that.
"I spoke with him a few times, he's been around here a few times as well," He added. "We've been following him this season and as a young player, he had a really difficult season with the injuries that he's had.
"But again, it's part of his progress. I know how high the expectations are of him for next year but we have to bear in mind the age that he's at and what he's done in the past.
"I'll make sure that we create the right environment for him so that he can keep growing as a player."
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