Arsenal bitter row with Saint-Etienne over William Saliba loan extension brought on by £2.25m appearance clause
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THE DISPUTE between Arsenal and Saint-Etienne over William Saliba's loan extension was reportedly inflamed by a clause worth £2.25million.
On Wednesday, the Premier League side confirmed the defender's return to North London after negotiations over his stay in France were ended.
Arsenal cited a disagreement over Saliba's training plan following an injury as well as their desire "not to be financially disadvantaged".
According to , the fee involved was worth £2.25m and based on the youngster reaching 17 starts for his loan club - to help incentivise him getting experience in the French top-tier.
Saint-Etienne are said to have demanded this money should Saliba, who has started 16 games in 2019/20, feature in their French Cup final clash with Paris Saint-Germain later this month.
With the loan agreement officially having ended on June 30, the Gunners reportedly asked Saint-Etienne to drop the fee if they intended on playing the centre-back.
A fresh deal could not be reached and the club have accepted that "this is a disappointment" for 19-year-old Saliba.
An read: "While it was not our primary concern, and ultimately not relevant as our training plan was not accepted, we also expected not to be financially disadvantaged by extending the loan.
"This was also not acceptable to St Etienne.
"We know this is a disappointment for William but he understands we are working to protect his long-term interests and those of Arsenal."
The Frenchman's stint back at Saint-Etienne, who he returned to on loan after penning a £27m deal with Arsenal last summer, was far from straightforward.
A hamstring injury kept him out of the team until October and Saliba managed only a handful of outings before breaking his metatarsal.
After the New Year, his second comeback was marked by a failure to win any of his games in Ligue 1 as Saint-Etienne flirted with relegation.
And he will play in North London next season, as expected, but will not be able to see out his old team's successful cup run because of the bitter row.
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Arsenal's statement added: "Despite the loan ending on June 30, we were willing to find a way for William to play in the cup final on July 24, despite having no contractual obligation to do so.
"As William is returning from injury, we asked that St Etienne follow a clear training plan with William in close collaboration with us, to ensure he is fully fit for the start of next season.
"To our surprise we were unable to reach agreement to this plan which was proposed by our medical experts, and we are simply not prepared to risk the welfare of an Arsenal player."