Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is planning to convert Ezri Konsa to a full-back as the Gunners prepare to welcome back William Saliba, according to reports.

The North Londoners brought Konsa to the Emirates Stadium in the summer transfer market in a well-timed move from Aston Villa in a deal worth £55m.

Arsenal found out that Saliba would miss the first few months of the season with a back injury, which didn’t require surgery but lots of rehabilitation, and Konsa has provided brilliant back-up in the meantime.

Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes have been seen as one of, if not the best, centre-back partnerships in world football over the last few years, and it’s likely that the France international will be back into the team ahead of Konsa soon enough.

Former Saint-Etienne centre-back Saliba took part in a training session on Tuesday with Arsenal boss Arteta revealing that he is “in a really good place” as he continues to recover from his long-term injury.

Arteta said: “His evolution has been as expected, which is not always the case. He feels very comfortable. He played 45 minutes behind closed doors last week. He feels ready to go now, so whether we use him or not is a matter of what the team needs.”

Konsa might feel hard done to if he is dropped for Saliba in the near future but Football Transfers have revealed that Arteta ‘has a surprising long-term plan’ for the ex-Aston Villa star.

Football Transfers has claimed that Konsa has been trained up as a right-back option which would give the England international another position to fight for.

Is it the end for White at Arsenal?

The report revealed: ‘On the face of things, William Saliba’s return to fitness following injury would appear to threaten his minutes, but FootballTransfers can reveal that Arteta has been preparing for this moment and has been drilling Konsa for a new role.

‘Since arriving in the summer, Konsa has been drilled to play at right-back, a position that is not unfamiliar to him given that he spent time playing for Villa in the position, notably during the 2023/24 season. He also made his England debut as a full-back.’

And Football Transfers insists that the decision to train up Konsa on the right could spell the end for Ben White at Arsenal, the report added: ‘White’s future would appear to be brought into question with the decision to train Konsa up to play on Arsenal’s right.’