Mikel Arteta contract renewal deadline passes as Arsenal wait for 'right moment' goes on
The transfer window has finished, the first international break of the new season is halfway through and the club has completed the first three matches ahead of a tricky triple-threat run of away games. Despite deadlines passing, however, Mikel Arteta’s contract remains an unanswered question that needs to be sorted.
The Spaniard’s current deal runs out at the end of the season which has led many to get somewhat anxious about whether he will renew. Arteta has been the core reason behind the club’s ascent back into the title race after well over a decade of coming anywhere but close to it.
He has overseen a drastic overhaul of the club’s philosophy and instilled clear principles and expectations which has bonded both the group but also the fanbase with a club which there were clear fractures present prior to his appointment. His work with Edu and the ownership has repaired relationships with the majority of supporters at an executive level too.
Yet despite football.london having understood for some time there remains a calmness about Arteta signing a new deal there has been very little in the way of an update. Arteta has indeed been asked on the topic but has been very coy on the matter.
"There is no update [on his contract] at the moment,” Arteta told ESPN in July. “The thing that hasn't changed is how happy I am and how valued I feel here and how much I love representing this club.
"Things happen in a natural way and our relationship is that good that I don't predict any issues happening. But things have to develop in the right way and it will happen."
READ MORE: New Arsenal absences give Mikel Arteta key warning before Tottenham and Manchester City
READ MORE: Arsenal suffer triple title blow as Mikel Arteta faces fixture congestion amid injury fears
After the pre-season tour and with the league back underway he was pressed on it again ahead of the game with Aston Villa. For once he some reference to a potential time.
“The focus has been on the transfer window and we had quite a lot of things to do, to discuss," Arteta told reporters in late August. “We are on it [the new contract] and we will take care of that at the right moment.”
Yet the window has been and gone and with the break of international football allowing some downtime despite work continuing with those players not picked for their countries, there has so far been little hints that it is coming. Fans should however be encouraged by the aforementioned quotes from Arteta as it certainly feels as though an extension is a matter of time.