North London club eyes Aston Villa defender as Saliba faces injury assessment

By Emeka Nwosu — 18 July 2026 — 3 min read

Arsenal is reportedly preparing an offer for Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa. This development comes as the North London club continues discussions regarding Morgan Rogers with his representatives and Aston Villa. Meanwhile, Arsenal faces a potential defensive challenge with William Saliba‘s back injury requiring assessment, with surgery being a consideration.

Ezri Konsa has not yet agreed to a new deal with Aston Villa, making him a potential target for Arsenal. While Arsenal pursues these transfer targets, Aston Villa is also active in the market, exploring options for wingers. Among the names on their radar are Crysencio Summerville from West Ham and Ibrahim Mbaye from Paris Saint-Germain.

Other transfer news across the Premier League includes Crystal Palace valuing Chelsea target Maxence Lacroix at up to £60m. Lacroix has expressed a desire to leave Crystal Palace amidst interest from Chelsea. Additionally, Ipswich Town had a £2.5m bid rejected for FC Volendam goalkeeper Kayne van Oevelen, and Hull is set to sign Olympiacos‘ Konstantis Tzolakis as a replacement for Ivor Pandur.

Saliba’s Injury Concerns

Arsenal will assess William Saliba‘s back injury upon his return to the club following his World Cup duties. The France centre-back has been dealing with a back issue for several weeks, which he carried into the World Cup. The problem reportedly worsened during France‘s semi-final loss to Spain, where he was forced off the field after only 30 minutes of play.

Surgery is one of the options that Arsenal will consider once Saliba returns to London. An operation would likely necessitate a prolonged period of recovery. The defender made 50 appearances across all competitions for Arsenal last season, a season in which the club ended a 22-year wait to win the Premier League and reached the Champions League final.

Earlier in the World Cup, Saliba commented on his condition, stating he had experienced minor niggles for several months. He mentioned gritting his teeth due to the importance of the Champions League and Premier League, and the infrequent nature of the World Cup. He missed France‘s final group stage match against Norway but returned for the knockout stages under coach Didier Deschamps. France is scheduled to play England in the third-place play-off on Saturday.

England National Team Developments

The appointment of Thomas Tuchel as England head coach in 2024 did not receive unanimous support from FA board members. Some members reportedly felt that the position should have been offered to an English candidate, rather than someone without prior experience managing an international team. Despite this, Liverpool winger Rio Ngumoha is being considered for Thomas Tuchel‘s squad next season, as the England head coach aims to build a team capable of challenging for Euro 2028.

Thomas Tuchel has privately addressed accusations that he encouraged his England team to try and hold on against Argentina during their World Cup semi-final defeat. A leading sports physiologist believes that England‘s players entered their match against Argentina burdened by significant fatigue. Meanwhile, Sir Gareth Southgate, the former England manager, is expected to attend Sunday’s World Cup final, a long-planned trip that would have proceeded even if England had advanced past the semi-finals.

In other international football news, Gianni Infantino has received formal endorsement from over 200 countries for re-election as Fifa‘s president. This comes despite a climate of unrest following the scandal surrounding Folarin Balogun‘s reprieve from suspension. The World Cup final itself is not under threat, despite air quality warnings in the area. In Scottish football, Celtic missed out on re-signing Kelechi Iheanacho due to his wage demands and are now reportedly ready to increase their interest in Egypt‘s World Cup winger Haissem Hassan. In cricket, Justin Langer is believed to be at the top of the ECB‘s shortlist for the men’s Test team coaching position after Andy Flower withdrew from consideration on Friday.

Source: skysports.com