FC Schalke have opened talks with Sead Kolasinac over a longer stay with the club, but he’d have to take a pay cut.

Ruhr24 report that Schalke sporting director Peter Knäbel is in talks with Sead Kolasinac over keeping him for longer than his initial loan spell from Arsenal, though their discussions haven’t reached a conclusion just yet.

The club’s plan is certainly to keep Kolasinac and fellow January returner Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. But the defender is still under contract with Arsenal and Ruhr24 report he receives a salary of over €8m, described as “far too much” for Schalke.

As a result, and as we’ve mentioned in the past, Kolasinac would need to make serious financial concessions to finalise his exit from North London back to Germany.

For those who aren’t aware, Schalke were relegated from the Bundesliga last month, which is why their finances are particularly constrained. They’re obviously aiming to bounce straight back up to the top flight, but there’s a lot of risk involved.

Knäbel has been clear that he considers Kolasinac a leader who can bring even more to their team if he stays. It’s really up to the player whether he’s willing to sacrifice a year of top-flight football in the hope of helping his club out of the hole they’re in.