Mikel Arteta says Arsenal are ‘doing everything they possibly can’ to secure William Saliba’s future at the club, but there are no updates to give at this stage.
The 22-year-old has been fantastic in central defence for the Gunners this season in his first campaign playing in the first team.
He signed back in 2019 but spent time on loan at Saint-Etienne, Nice and Marseille before being trusted in the first team by Mikel Arteta.
The international’s current contract expires in 2024, meaning he has a little over a year left on the deal and Arsenal are extremely keen for him to sign a new one.
Arteta sounds confident that Saliba will put pen to paper, but when asked if there was any update on the situation, he said: ‘No.
‘We want to keep our best talent. Especially the players that deserve some recognition.
‘I think he has been incredible since he came back from his loan period and we want to reward him, that is for sure. We will find the right moment to do that.
‘Obviously Edu and the board are on top of every negotiation regarding new contracts and now we are doing everything we possibly can to do that in the right moment at the right time.
‘The communication and the relationship is super. It is about timing, I think. Nothing else.’
Saliba has been out of action since March with a back problem and remains out for the clash with Newcastle this weekend.
‘Not a lot of progress,’ Arteta said of Saliba’s fitness. ‘He’s feeling better every day but he’s not been able still to have any activity around the first team so we don’t expect him to be with us.’
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