Arsenal plan Emile Smith Rowe transfer talks as Mikel Arteta stance already made clear

Emile Smith Rowe looks set to face a defining few months this summer with his future at Arsenal to be decided. The 23-year-old, following on from a challenging 2022/23 campaign, has again made minimal appearances this season with just 346 Premier League minutes to his name.

Towards the start of his senior stint at Emirates Stadium, Smith Rowe was predominantly used out wide but Arteta now sees him as a midfielder. Unfortunately for the Hale End graduate, competition for places is rife with Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Thomas Partey and Jorginho all ahead of him in the pecking order.

Despite his limited minutes, Arteta is still clearly a huge fan of Smith Rowe with his stance on the Englishmen already made clear. “I love him as a player, he is a joy to watch," Arteta said after Smith Rowe's performance against Luton back in April.

"How he moves, changes direction and how physical he was today without the ball. He went into duels and won a lot of them and was thinking with that killer instinct to play forward and make things happen. When Emile is in that moment, it’s very difficult to stop him. Today he helped us a lot to win the game.”

Regardless of Arteta's admiration for Smith Rowe as a player, it could be time for a brutal decision to be made, one that was avoided by Arsenal 12 months ago. “This time last year, Arsenal sat down with Emile Smith Rowe’s representatives to make it plain he was not for sale," according to the Athletic's gunnerblog.

"If the decision were purely down to Arteta, they might keep him around again. But Arsenal have less leverage this year. Smith Rowe has just two years remaining on his contract and the club may accept the time is right to sell.”

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With conversations having already happened surrounding Smith Rowe's future, Arsenal have made another huge call. According to journalist Charles Watts, via Caught Offside, the Gunners have planned further talks with Smith Rowe and his representatives to discuss his future this summer.

The versatile playmaker has two years remaining on his contract with it certainly likely he would not be best pleased with a third successive season as a squad player. As such, he could leave his boyhood club ahead of the 2024/25 season with several clubs on high alert.