Arsenal and England defender Calum Chambers has signed a new deal with the Gunners, keeping him at the Emirates Stadium until 2021.

https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/918152938752749571

Chambers signed for Arsenal in 2014 from Southampton for around £18m. He’s gone on to make 60 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring three goals, while representing England three times at senior level.

https://twitter.com/CalumChambers95/status/918161627496828929

The 22-year-old, who can play right-back and centre-back, has been on the periphery of the Arsenal first-team in the last 18 months, spending 2016/17 on loan with Middlesbrough and this season with the u23s, but he’s clearly still valued by manager Arsene Wenger.

And with Laurent Koscielny’s ongoing injury problems and Per Mertesacker retiring in the summer, Chambers may have a real chance to nail down a starting place next year. He’s so far made just one senior appearance for Arsenal this season – a 45-minute showing in the EFL Cup – but he’s still young enough to improve.

The likes of Rob Holding may be ahead of him in the pecking order, but Chambers might prove useful during Arsenal’s injury crisis. There were rumours that he could leave in the summer as a result of a lack of playing time, but his performances for Middlesbrough on loan may have convinced Wenger he was worth keeping.

Crystal Palace were one of the clubs interested in the 22-year-old, having had a bid rejected in the past, but Arsenal opted against letting him go and have now tied him down for four years.