Arsenal are set for talks to try and stop a £173,000-per-week key man from leaving the club in 2025, and it is believed the Gunners are hoping to make "significant" progress on this during the current international break.
Arsenal enter international break after 1-1 draw against Brighton
The north Londoners were hoping to enter this period of international fixtures on much more of a high, but they instead find themselves preparing for blockbuster clashes against Tottenham and Man City after a less-than-ideal result last weekend.
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Brighton upset Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium last Saturday, holding Mikel Arteta's side to a 1-1 draw in north London thanks to striker Joao Pedro's equaliser just before the hour mark.
Pedro's finish cancelled out an expertly taken opener from Arsenal fan favourite Kai Havertz, who chipped Brighton keeper Bart Verbruggen with a cool finish just before half-time, with star midfielder Declan Rice also sent off for two bookable offences.
Tottenham (away)
September 15
Man City (away)
September 22
Leicester City (home)
September 28
Southampton (home)
October 5
Bournemouth (away)
October 19
On paper, away trips to north London neighbours Spurs and Premier League title rivals City pose far tougher tests, and losing Rice through suspension will come as a seismic blow for Arteta.
Summer signing Mikel Merino is also reportedly set to be sidelined for around two months, after the Spaniard sustained a shoulder injury during his first ever training session at London Colney, so Arsenal will be pretty short in midfield.
“Well, he had the incident and he carried on playing – and training,” said Arteta on Merino's injury, which was caused by a clash with star defender Gabriel Magalhaes.
“And at some point we were looking at him and thought he did not look right. That shows you how much he wanted it and he did not want to accept that was happening in that moment. But actually, that is what happened and now let’s use the time that we have, right now, to make sure he is familiar with everything that we are doing, how we live and what we expect of him, about our team dynamics.
“He will be in every team meeting as well. We will use the time in the best possible way and in a few weeks he will be ready."
As Merino continues his recovery, and deadline day summer signingRaheem Sterling prepares for his imminent debut post-internationals, it is reported that Arsenal also want to use this time to make progress in resolving a key issue. Arsenal set for international break talks over new contract for Arteta
According to HITC, Arsenal hope to make "significant" progress on talks over a new contract for Arteta, so much so that a new deal for the 42-year-old could be on the table by the end of September.
Negotiations on fresh terms for Arteta are apparently set to intensify in the coming weeks, as Arsenal chiefs do not want his future to become a topic of conversation which could drag on for much of the 2024/2025 campaign.
Although there is zero sign Arteta is thinking about leaving north London, with his current £173,000-per-week deal set to expire next year, Edu Gaspar and club officials want the issue put to bed at the nearest opportunity.
"Mikel Arteta has done an amazing job," said former Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch in 2022. "I think he's the most underrated manager in the league. With a young team he's done an amazing job. It's taken time, he took a lot of heat in the beginning."