Ryan Fraser is rejecting the chance to sign a short-term contract extension with Bournemouth, and he’ll leave the club at the end of the month.

Bournemouth confirmed on Wednesday that Ryan Fraser declined to sign a short-term contract extension with the club. The other four players at the club with deals expiring in June all agreed to stay for an extra month, but Fraser turned the chance down.

As a result, Fraser will be a free agent as soon as July comes around. Presumably, he won’t play for Bournemouth in the meantime either, considering he’s probably burning a few bridges with teammates. But we’ll see on that one.

Fraser’s free to sign with a new club in July, following links to Arsenal in the past. However, he can’t play for whichever club he joins until next season (2020/21).

If you’re wondering why the winger would turn down a short-term contract if he can’t play anywhere else yet anyway, the answer is almost certainly because he wants to avoid an injury. If he plays for Bournemouth and pulls his hamstring it’s a lot harder to join a new club.

It’s still a blow to his current side. They now have to try and avoid relegation without one of their regular starters. Bournemouth sit 18th in the Premier League having played a game more than Aston Villa below them.

For what it’s worth, the Arsenal links to Fraser cooled in recent weeks. The Athletic suggested he isn’t a priority signing, so it’s anyone’s guess where he ends up.