Aaron Ramsdale labels teammate Saliba ‘Rolls-Royce’

Aaron Ramsdale has hailed the impact of ‘Rolls-Royce’ defender William Saliba at Arsenal but admits the centre-back still needs ‘digging out’ on occasion.

Mikel Arteta’s men cemented their place at the top of the Premier League with a resounding 3-1 win over north London rivals on Saturday, maintaining their one-point advantage over Manchester City.

Saliba put in another outstanding performance against 10-man Spurs. Indeed, he kept the likes of Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Richarlison at arm’s length for most of the game.

The 21-year-old has been the club’s most impressive defender since returning from a loan spell at Marseille in the summer.

Indeed, his partnership with Brazilian Gabriel Magalhaes has turned into one of the best in the league.

And speaking about Saliba’s performances, Ramsdale admits the player is not the finished article just yet and still needs to odd nudge if he makes a mistake.

The England keeper said: “He has fit in really well. It is a credit to him that he has been put straight into the team. He is a bit of a Rolls-Royce with the way he moves and he has never seemed phased.

“He is still a young boy so still makes mistakes so at the minute it is either Ben (White), myself, Gabriel or Thomas Partey digging him out and he is digging other people out as well.

“That is the main thing at the minute, our mistakes aren’t leading to too many things and that is the sign of a team with good characters in and around that back five.”