Arsenal fans have a theory about William Saliba after his unusually shoddy display for France on Monday night.
Saliba partnered Ibrahima Konate at the heart of the Les Bleus backline as they beat Belgium 2-1 away from home in the UEFA Nations League.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Randal Kolo Muani bagged a brace for France, who also had Aurelien Tchouameni sent off in the second half.
Saliba is widely viewed as one of the best defenders in the world after a series of imperious performances for Arsenal.
But he had a couple of moments to forget in his latest outing for his country.
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Saliba was at fault for Belgium's equaliser, giving away the ball in the build-up before losing RB Leipzig's Lois Openda and allowing him to head home.
Yet before that he had already given away a penalty by bringing down Openda.
In the 19th minute, France's backline was breached by Openda, who raced in behind towards goal.
Having tried to play offside - Saliba caught up with the 24-year-old but as he did, he slipped and recklessly swiped him out as he Openda checked back inside.
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His blushes were spared as Youri Tielemans missed the resulting spot-kick but it was uncharacteristic horror show from Saliba.
However, Arsenal fans were not concerned by what they saw. In fact, many deemed it to be a blessing as they think it will stop Real Madrid from circling around one of their key players.
One explained: "Saliba playing like s**t on the world stage which means Madrid won’t come in for him."
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A second said: "Saliba is such a real one for putting up this stinker to ward off Real Madrid's scouts."
A third commented: "Real Madrid are you sure you want to buy this Saliba? You might need to have a rethink."
A fourth sarcastically wrote: "Hope Real Madrid are watching. William Saliba isn’t all he’s cracked up to be, especially when he doesn’t have Gabriel beside him."
A final user posted: "Dear Real Madrid, this is the William Saliba you’d get if you bought him. Trust me you don’t want him."
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Saliba will be in action for Arsenal this weekend as they travel to Bournemouth on Saturday.
Topics: Arsenal, William Saliba, France, Real Madrid, Fan Reactions
Josh Lawless