has picked ahead of ’s and believes the centre-back can become one of the world’s best defenders.
Saliba has now established himself as a key figure at the heart of Arsenal’s defence having been signed from Saint-Etienne for £27 million in 2019.
Martinez, meanwhile, came under fire after his £56.7m move from Ajax last year, however, Ferdinand believes the World Cup winner answered his critics in his first season at United.
However, in a direct comparison between the two defenders, Ferdinand says he favours Saliba.
When asked who he would pick between Saliba and Martinez, Ferdinand told talkSPORT: ‘I’ll go Saliba.
‘I think Saliba could potentially be top, top, top.
‘I think Martinez answered a lot of critics last year, a lot of doubters about his size and stuff like that, fantastic on the ball.
‘But like this one [comparison] I think also you’re helped by the team you play in. He’s in a very solid, consistent team, Saliba. Martinez isn’t.’
Ferdinand also dismissed suggestions that Martin Odegaard is now as good as Kevin de Bruyne.
‘Not yet,’ Ferdinand said.
‘De Bruyne, what he’s done in the Premier League, it’s nothing short of crazy. Premier League history, one of the best midfielders.
‘But I think Odegaard has the ability to get there.
‘When he got the armband [at Arsenal] I was like, ‘woah, that’s a huge responsibility on one so young’. As a player I backed him fully, great talent but I wasn’t sure if we would be able to… I didn’t question him, I was like, ‘we’ll see now if he can handle the armband’.
‘He took it on, wears it with pride, wears it well.’
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