William Saliba made a great effort for the most part in his UEFA EURO 2024 debut. Throughout his ninety-nine-minute effort, he completed the most passes of any player in the game with fifty-nine accurate passes. He also made all four of the long passes with accuracy and completed the one dribble he attempted. Saliba made six defensive clearances, seven ball recoveries, and won three aerial duels. Remarkably, he was not dribbled past at all.

Saliba and Upamecano close in on Sabitzer as he darts through on the left, hoping to get a run on the ball in the box. He falls and screams for a penalty, but the referee dismisses his concerns right away.

VAR doesn’t even appear to be worried, failing to perform even a quick inspection.

Euro 2024 Football – Group D – Austria vs. France – June 17, 2024 – Dusseldorf Arena, Dusseldorf, Germany William Saliba of France and Marcel Sabitzer of Austria in action Wolfgang Rattay for REUTERS

There were a few instances where Saliba could have performed better, including the moment he made the slightly incorrect head clearance that allowed Austria to score. This is most likely due to Saliba’s out-of-position play at left center-back rather than his more comfortable right-sided role at Arsenal. As a right-footed player, he sometimes seemed a little nervous when Austria pressed high and he had to make quick decisions with his less strong left foot.

Nevertheless, Saliba’s big-stage debut was generally quite promising. He seems able to be a reliable player for France in the future, given more time to adjust to his international teammates and find his feet as a left-sided center-back.