Arsenal understood to have agreed new contract with Aubameyang
Arsenal are understood to have agreed a new contract with Pierre Emerick Aubameyang, according to Jason Burt of the Telegraph.
The Gunners are confident that they are extremely close to extending Aubameyang’s stay in North London. The Gabonese striker will sign a three year deal worth £250,000 a week which is a significant upgrade on his current deal.
The Arsenal skipper’s current contract expires next year and there were legitimate fears that he would refuse to sign a new deal and depart the club this summer. It looks like those fears can be put to rest as confirmation of his new contract draws nearer.
Head coach Mikel Arteta was confident the Gabon international would sign a new deal at Arsenal and it looks like he was right. Aubameyang tweeted an emoji of an hourglass earlier today and fans interpreted that as a sign that he was close to signing a new deal. That is believed to be true.
The North London club hope to sign Gabriel from Lille in the coming weeks. They have agreed personal terms with the Brazilian defender who has attracted interest from a host of clubs in Europe including Everton, Napoli and Manchester United. Napoli believe they are the favourites for the 22 year old’s signature and this complicates matters but a decision on the player’s future is imminent.
Raul Sanllehi, who has since left his role as head of football at Arsenal, led negotiations for both deals. Edu and Mikel Arteta will now have more control over recruitment. The club hopes Sanllehi’s departure will not affect negotiations.
It is believed that Edu and Arteta have forged a strong partnership and have a plan to rebuild an underperforming squad. Sanllehi is believed to have been unhappy with the club’s recent decision to announce 55 redundancies due to the financial implications of the pandemic. He is believed to have opposed the redundancies, in particular those of senior members of the scouting department like Francis Cagigao and Brain McDermott as he believed it would compromise Arsenal’s ability to get transfers over the line in the current window.
In the end, Raul Sanllehi himself departed the club due to the financial consequences of the coronavirus. A review that led to this decision was spearheaded by Tim Lewis, a corporate lawyer who became a non-executive member of Arsenal’s board in July.
