After agreeing a new deal with William Saliba, Arsenal are going to hold talks with Martin Odegaard over a contract extension next.
On Saturday morning, reports broke of an Arsenal agreement over a new contract for William Saliba, keeping him at the club until 2027.
This is obviously big news, and it concludes a year-long effort to tie down Saliba, Bukayo Saka, and Gabriel Martinelli.
The Gunners have also agreed deals with Gabriel Magalhaes and Aaron Ramsdale during that same period, and they’re close to a deal with Reiss Nelson.
Mohamed Elneny was another player to extend his contract, though in his case, the extension was about giving him an extra year on reduced terms while he works on his injury comeback.
But despite all the good work the Arsenal contracts team have done this season, they’re not stopping yet.
Fabrizio Romano reports that Martin Odegaard is the next player on Arsenal’s list, with negotiations to take place soon.
Mikel Arteta’s current captain, Odegaard has a contract with Arsenal until 2025, and the club have an option to extend to 2026.
But the player loves the club, Arsenal want him to be part of their long-term project, and this season’s title challenge and return to the Champions League have given everyone reasons to be optimistic.
There’s clearly a desire from Arsenal’s end to capitalise on the current situation, with Odegaard playing well as a starter in an improving Arsenal side.
If everyone is happy with how things are going, now seems like a good time to make Odegaard the next player to extend his deal.
Odegaard made 37 Premier League appearances in Arsenal’s 38 games in 2022/23, starting all 37. Only Ramsdale, Gabriel, and Saka played more of the league campaign.
The midfielder scored 15 goals and provided seven assists in the league, making this his best-ever league goal contributions tally for a season (eclipsing his 18 with Vitesse in 2018/19).