Neville and Carra speak lyrically about Arsenal debutant, compare 21-year-old to Man Utd legend

Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher have both praised Arsenal defender William Saliba after his 'very good' debut against Crystal Palace.

The Gunners kicked off their Premier League campaign with a stunning 2-0 win at Selhurst Park on Friday night.

Jesus, Saliba shines but Arsenal duo could force Arteta back to the drawing board

The performance was a huge improvement on last season's opener at Brentford, where they were played out of the park in a 2-0 loss.

There is a huge amount of optimism at Arsenal this season after adding Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Fabio Vieira in the summer transfer market.

One player who feels like a new signing is Saliba, who made his competitive debut for the club on Friday despite being signed from Saint-Etienne three years ago.

He has spent time on loan in France for the past two and a half seasons and enjoyed a particularly successful spell with Marseille in 2021/22.

The 21-year-old was named Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year and returned to Arsenal ready to compete for a starting spot.

Takehiro Tomiyasu not set to start against Palace, Benjamin White was moved to right-back, with Saliba operating alongside Gabriel at the heart of defence.

It was a walk in the park for Saliba, who Sky named their Player of the Match after an outstanding performance in a very tricky game.

Experts Carragher and Neville were both very impressed with the young Frenchman, with the latter comparing him to his former team-mate, Rio Ferdinand.

Neville said (quotes via Metro): "I was extremely impressed with Saliba. In fact, he reminded me of a young Rio Ferdinand."

Lots of praise indeed. Ferdinand won six Premier League titles, one Champions League and three League Cups during his career and is considered one of the best centre-backs of all time.

Neville continued: "He's such a young defender at 21. Going through that second half, when Arsenal weren't at their best, would have been the most enjoyable thing for Mikel Arteta.< /p>

"Crystal Palace away, it's a tough challenge and it's a great performance from Saliba."

Carragher added: "I thought he was really good. He didn't have much to do in the first half, but there was a long ball where he just dropped, the way he handled it…he looked the business, he looked the part.

"At such a young age, the way he handled that second half...he looked like the real deal.

"Bringing him in certainly adds something because you always thought he was a weakness for Arsenal. His physicality will definitely help Arsenal in these away games."

Saliba spoke to Sky after the match, telling Geoff Shreeves: "We knew it would be tough here, but we were strong and solid.

"I've waited a long time to make my debut and I'm happy to start with a clean sheet and a win. It's important for confidence."