Raul Sanllehi's close relationship with Saint-Etienne president Bernard Caiazzo and William Saliba’s preference played a major role in Arsenal seeing off late interest from Tottenham Hotspur in the French defender in the summer.
The Gunners were chasing the teenage centre-back all summer and it took several weeks of negotiations between the two clubs to eventually reach an agreement over a fee.
But it seemed that all that work would amount to nothing when Tottenham came into the picture late and got in touch with Saint-Etienne and the player’s representative.
They offered better financial terms to the young defender and a more immediate route to the first team.
But according to The Athletic, Arsenal played their cards right and used their personal relationship with Saint-Etienne to get the deal over the line.
Saliba’s preference was always Arsenal and the French defender was not swayed by the late interest from Tottenham.
And Sanllehi’s personal relationship with the Saint-Etienne hierarchy also helped Arsenal to see off the competition from their north London rivals.
Saliba is currently on loan at Saint-Etienne, but has been named in Arsenal’s Premier League squad.
