William Saliba waiting for 'dream' Real Madrid transfer as Arsenal push for 'quick response' after submitting contract extension offer

According to Le 10 Sport, Saliba has received a healthy offer to extend his contract with Arsenal, where he has developed into one of the best centre-backs in the world. While the report claims he hasn't been left 'indifferent' by the Gunners' proposal, the France defender 'dreams' of playing for Real Madrid and, with only two years left to run on his current deal, he is torn over whether or not to pen fresh terms at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal opened contract talks with Saliba earlier this summer in the hope of convincing the 24-year-old to commit his future to north London, with Mikel Arteta and his colleagues clearly keen for a quick response to avoid the situation being dragged into a transfer saga. The likes of Kylian Mbappe, Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba have all joined Los Blancos on free transfers in recent years, while Trent Alexander-Arnold arrived in time for the Club World Cup after running his deal down at Liverpool.

Saliba has formed arguably the Premier League's strongest current central defence partnership alongside Gabriel Magalhaes, with the pair offering a significant goal threat thanks to Arsenal's set-piece tactics.

With Saliba still having two more years left on his deal, he could still win the piece of silverware the Gunners crave so badly before leaving for a new challenge. They went close in both the Premier League and Champions League last season but ultimately came up short, but Martin Zubimendi and Kepa Arrizabalaga have already arrived to bolster the squad and deals for Christian Norgaard and Viktor Gyokeres are thought to be edging closer.