French media tear into William Saliba over France mistakes after Arsenal star has 'worst match'

William Saliba was in the thick of the action during France's Nations League win over Belgium, but the Arsenal defender endured a rare off night at the heart of defence

Arsenal defender William Saliba faced significant criticism following a less-than-stellar performance while playing for France on Monday. Despite Les Bleus' hard-fought 2-1 victory over Belgium, Saliba struggled to maintain his impressive early season form and endured a difficult evening in Brussels.

The 23-year-old conceded a penalty after fouling Lois Openda, although Youri Tielemans missed the subsequent spot-kick. However, Openda managed to outmanoeuvre Saliba again, scoring for Belgium and drawing the match level after Randal Kolo Muani had given France the lead.

Gunners ace Saliba's night took a further hit when he lost possession of the ball with just 13 minutes remaining, forcing Real Madrid's Aurelien Tchouameni to foul Tielemans who was on target - resulting in a second yellow card. Despite these setbacks, Saliba ended up on the winning side thanks to a second-half winner from Kolo Muani, securing a 2-1 victory for Didier Deschamps' team.

However, the French press were not so forgiving, with So Foot awarding Saliba a lowly 2/10 rating. They wrote: "Penalty, (yellow) card, loss of ball... Fortunately, Openda ended up not taking advantage of his elastic marking before half-time because he would have felt obliged to score this goal himself."

Didocu Sport didn't hold back in their critique, giving him the same low rating and branding it his poorest performance for his nation. Their review was harsh: "There is a lot to say about his match and not much good. He undoubtedly had his worst match in Blue."

They continued with pointed remarks: "He concedes the penalty for a foul on Lois Openda and receives a yellow card where he clearly does well. He leaves behind the same Lois Openda on the Belgian equaliser. And where is he when Aurelien Tchouameni has to sacrifice himself and take a red card... in the position of the last defender?!"

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Despite this setback, Saliba has been a consistent presence for his country after a period of waiting. He earned significant praise during the Euros in the summer as France managed five consecutive clean sheets heading into the semi-finals, only to be knocked out by the eventual champions Spain.

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