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Saliba plans to return after the loan negotiations with the collapse of St. Etienne for Arsenal

(Reuters) – Arsenal will not renew William Saliba’s loan agreement in St. Etienne after the two clubs have not agreed on training and financial terms for the French defender, the Premier League club said on Wednesday.

Saliba, who signed £ 27m for Arsenal from St. Etienne last year, was loaned to the French club for the 2019-20 season.

Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, the Ligue 1 season ended prematurely and the final of the Coupe de France was postponed to July 24, a few weeks after Saliba’s loan was due to end on June 30.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta announced on Tuesday that the youthful defender would stay for the Cup final against Paris St. Germain, but talks between the two clubs ended before midnight.

“During our talks with St. Etienne, our goal was to protect William Saliba’s welfare and Arsenal’s interests while meeting the terms of the loan,” said Arsenal in a statement.

In a statement, St. Etienne accused Arsenal of imposing “absolutely unacceptable athletic and financial conditions”, but Arsenal said they were unhappy with training plans for Saliba, who missed three months of the season with a broken foot.

“To our surprise, we were unable to agree on this plan, which was suggested by our medical experts, and we are simply not prepared to risk the wellbeing of an Arsenal player,” said the club in north London.

“Although this was not our main concern and was ultimately irrelevant because our training schedule was not accepted, we also expected that the extension of the loan would not result in any financial disadvantage. This was also unacceptable for St. Etienne. ”

Hardik Vyas reports in Bengaluru, edited by Pritha Sarkar

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