Mikel Arteta sounds increasingly hopeful that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will sign a new deal with Arsenal, highlighting how much he has settled in London, along with his family, and how much he is loved and respected by his colleagues.

Until he signs a new contract or leaves the club, Aubameyang’s future is going to dominate the summer transfer narrative, and rightly so. His future will determine so much for the club – if they have to replace him, how much money they have, and what message his decision gives to the rest of the squad, amongst other things.

Now sitting above Tottenham after an equal number of games played, Arsenal are on the up. The fact that Mikel Arteta has already collected as many league wins as Unai Emery should tell you that.

Of course, that’s not enough to keep a player like Auba around, but it does point towards a brighter future, one of that none of us could see while Emery stuck around.

So will Auba?

“I don’t know, it is the way that I feel!” Arteta said. “The way that I communicate with him, the conversations that I have with him and the people around him. It is the energy I sense.

“It is just my opinion, things change in football very quickly but when you ask me in that moment how I feel about Auba’s future, in this moment I feel that he wants to continue with us and keep developing and help us to become a better team.

“He needs to feel he belongs somewhere that he believes we can achieve the goals that he has individually and collectively for a long time.

“He is very settled in the city, his family are really happy here as well I think, and he is loved, respected and admired by his team-mates, which is a huge thing to have at any football club.

“So that’s what gives me positivity, as well because I see the enjoyment he is having, the work-rate that he puts in all the time, and the decisions that he makes every time. So that is where my feelings are coming from.”