Arsenal believe contract talks with William Saliba are progressing well, with the player admitting he hopes to sign an extension soon.
James Olley reports for ESPN that sources claim the Arsenal hierarchy believe talks over a contract extension for William Saliba are progressing well. That’s in spite of the regular rumours from Spain that Real Madrid are interested in signing the centre-back.
Speaking after Arsenal’s pre-season win over Newcastle United, Saliba answered a question from AFTV about when he would sign an extension by saying: “Hopefully soon! God is great.”
The player later expanded on that comment in quotes reported by ESPN, saying: “Yeah, hopefully [I’ll sign a new deal]. Of course, there is nothing now but there is a good conversation with my agent and the club. Let’s see.”
Reports in May suggested that in response to Real Madrid’s interest in Saliba, Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta had stepped up contract extension talks.
Berta had originally initiated the talks very early in his tenure, and L’Equipe claimed he’d then ramped up the conversations again in early May.
It’s likely that the summer holidays slowed things down a bit, but with pre-season well underway and Saliba back with the squad it would be a good time to get things sorted.
Arsenal have already done so with Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri in recent weeks, despite the lack of an official announcement on Nwaneri at the time of writing.
Saliba’s current deal expires in 2027, so Arsenal will want to get an extension done soon to avoid the risk of the French international ultimately leaving on a free transfer.