Mikel Arteta and Tomas Rosicky set for new deals
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has today confirmed that the club will begin contract talks with duo Mikel Arteta and Tomas Rosicky.
The duo are set to be out of contract in the Summer but in today’s press conference, Wenger confirmed that the club will look to open up contract talks with the duo and is hopeful that they will both be sorted by the end of May.
The two veterans aren’t seen as regular first-team players anymore, but Wenger is desperate to keep them around the club due to their experience and also their commitment to the club.
Arteta, who is the club-captain, has been out for the majority of the season due to injury and has seemingly been replaced by Francis Coquelin, who has become an important figure in The Gunners’ first-team.
As for Rosicky, he has been in-and-out of the first-team picture for the past few seasons but has revealed he has no plans on leaving despite being close to the exit door last season.
Earlier in the campaign the Czech midfielder revealed that he was close to an exit but Wenger urged him and convinced him to stay put.
Now the Arsenal boss has confirmed that the duo are set for contract talks and will both be offered new one-year deals.
Deals on the Table
Wenger said: “I think yes, they will be here next year.
“We will sort that out at the end of May.”
However, Rosicky still has some doubts in his mind about his role at the club and that could be pivotal when it comes to the negotiations.
Recently he said: “Since the start of the year things have improved, the team has started to play better football and what’s more I’m playing.
“Compared to the first six months, it’s much better. We’ll see how it goes from here.
“I don’t really know [why I didn’t play]. It’s a good question, I would also like to know.
“The coach gave me a chance towards the end the year and then began to give me more playing time. I don’t know, maybe it was a watershed moment.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles
