Arsenal are looking embarrassingly likely to lose both Pierre-Emerick Aubameang and Bukayo Saka in the summer, with both players having turned down contract offers this term.
The duo have been amongst the most consistent Gunners this season, if the THE most consistent, yet our club has so far failed to convince either to sign a new deal to keep them at the club beyond 2021.
If no deals can be agreed before the summer, we will likely have to endure a stressful transfer window in which we may be forced to accept an exit for both key players, despite a strong need for both players to stay to push up the table next term.
Our club has previously stated that every player has their price, and IF the two complete the season without agreeing new terms, we will more than likely be forced to sell at risk of losing both for free in 12 months time.
What I do not understand is why Arsenal Football Club are continually allowing themselves to get into these situations.
We had this in 2018 when both Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil were allowed to run into the final six months of both of their deals, which ended up with the Chilean being swapped with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, losing our best player to Man United, while the former German international held us to ransom for a whopping £350,000 per week deal, one we are paying the price for now.
After this instance, our club claimed that they would not allow such contract situations to develop, and Dick Law was sacked as our club contract negotiator, but here we are once again, with two of our three most valuable players so far refusing contract offers with just over 12 months remaining on their deals.
OK, the club may not have foreseen how much of an impact Saka could have had in his breakthrough season, but what doesn’t make sense is how the 18 year-old could have turned down a new offer from us, allowing himself to stay on his current £3,000 per week wages unless our club simply was undervaluing the young England Under-19 star.
The youngster has featured in as many league matches as Ozil this season, and he obviously needs a little level of reality in his wage offering, but how badly must the club have undervalued him, for him to refuse and stay on the measly wage he is on?
Aubameyang is more understandable, as he has previously stated his wishes to play in Spain, and for Real Madrid due to family ties, wishes he expressed even before joining Arsenal, but I watch this guy play week-in week-out and he is smiling. Aubz loves playing for Arsenal, loves scoring goals, and you can see the rapor he has with his team-mates in wanting to succeed, and I do not see why if Arsenal were willing to pay him the wages he deserved, why he would leave.
Robin Van Persie recently claimed that he didn’t want to quit the club in order to join Man United, but that he spoke to club officials on how the club needed to improve aspects of the club in order to succeed, and that he got a resounding no to a number of points, forcing him to seek success elsewhere.
I fear that Arsenal as a club are losing grip on their ‘big club’ title, and should we lose both Saka and Aubameyang, neither will be successfully replaced by players of the same ability and potential.
Are the club showing a lack of ambition? Can the club finally back the right manager in the coming window? Could Arteta persuade both to stay this summer?
Patrick
