Arsenal are already working on important business ahead of next season: keeping three key players at the club for the foreseeable future
(Image credit: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Arsenal are close to completing three major contracts for squad members.
The Gunners are already planning for next season, with new midfielders being targeted – but manager Mikel Arteta and sporting director Edu Gaspar are both reportedly keen to tie key stars down for even longer. Arsenal's wage bill has been drastically reduced in recent seasons with the likes of Mesut Ozil, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang all leaving, leaving a void of earners raking in upwards of £200,000 a week.
Gabriel Jesus and Thomas Partey are the only two players rumoured to be earning that much money at the Emirates Stadium – but now, Bukayo Saka could join them.
Bukayo Saka could be set to become Arsenal's top earner (Image credit: Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images)
talkSPORT are claiming that the England international will earn £300,000 a week on his new deal – though this is unconfirmed and may not be the base salary.
Saka's extension is expected to run until 2028, giving him another five years at the club that he broke through at as an academy graduate. According to football.london, Aaron Ramsdale and William Saliba will both follow suit.
Goalkeeper Ramsdale has been a huge hit between the sticks since arriving in the 2021 summer transfer window from Sheffield United and has been integral to Arsenal's title push in recent weeks with stunning performances away to the likes of Liverpool and Newcastle United.
Saliba, meanwhile, has missed the run-in with a back injury but after returning from three successive loans in Ligue 1, has cemented his place as one of the most impressive young centre-backs on the continent with assured and dominant displays at the heart of the north Londoners' backline.
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William Saliba and Aaron Ramsdale have both been offered new contracts by Arsenal (Image credit: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Football.london mention in their report that a number of other stars could well leave this summer, with the likes of Kieran Tierney, Reiss Nelson and Folarin Balogun all attracting interest from elsewhere.
The Gunners sit second in the table with just three matches remaining in the Premier League.
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Mark White has been at on FourFourTwo since joining in January 2020, first as a staff writer before becoming content editor in 2023. An encyclopedia of football shirts and boots knowledge – both past and present – Mark has also represented FFT at both FA Cup and League Cup finals (though didn't receive a winners' medal on either occasion) and has written pieces for the mag ranging on subjects from Bobby Robson's season at Barcelona to Robinho's career. He has written cover features for the mag on Mikel Arteta and Martin Odegaard, and is assisted by his cat, Rosie, who has interned for the brand since lockdown.
