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Why Vivianne Miedema's new Arsenal deal is a major coup for the whole WSL

Vivianne Miedema of Arsenal shoots - Steve Paston/PA Wire
Vivianne Miedema of Arsenal shoots - Steve Paston/PA Wire

Vivianne Miedema says winning titles with Arsenal would "mean more than winning them with another club at the moment" after signing a new contract with the north London club, in a major boost for Jonas Eidevall's side.

Netherlands striker Miedema, the Women's Super League's record goalscorer, is understood to have turned down offers from multiple clubs including Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona, opting to stay in the WSL instead.

Her existing contract had been due to expire this summer meaning she would have been able to leave the club on a free transfer. Sources have told Telegraph Sport that Miedema feels settled in London and "at home" with Arsenal, where she has won two major trophies: the 2019 league title and a League Cup the year before.

The length of the 25-year-old's new deal has not been disclosed. Despite joining the league six years after its foundation, Miedema, who has already spent five years at Arsenal since signing from Bayern Munich in 2017,  has scored 74 goals in the WSL, 13 more than Ellen White in second place.

“I think the most beautiful thing about the game is building something with a team and with people around you that you really want to be around,” Miedema said. “I do feel like I have got that at Arsenal. I feel like for me, winning titles with Arsenal will mean a lot more to me than winning them with another club at the moment. And that’s what I obviously hope to achieve with Arsenal.”

Vivianne Miedema of Arsenal is challenged by Molly Bartrip of Tottenham Hotspur during the Barclays FA Women's Super League match between Arsenal Women and Tottenham Hotspur Women at Emirates Stadium on May 04, 2022 - Catherine Ivill/Getty Images
Vivianne Miedema of Arsenal is challenged by Molly Bartrip of Tottenham Hotspur during the Barclays FA Women's Super League match between Arsenal Women and Tottenham Hotspur Women at Emirates Stadium on May 04, 2022 - Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

Miedema also finished the campaign with the joint-highest number of assists (eight) as Arsenal, who lost merely one game, missed out on the league title by a single point to Chelsea on the final day of the season.

Head coach Eidevall described Miedema as "a stellar talent" and added: "As a club, our ambition is to win titles and compete at the highest level - we know Viv’s own ambitions are the same, and together we will give everything to achieve that.”


Analysis: A significant moment for Arsenal, but also for the WSL


As PSG and European champions Barcelona' attempts to persuade Miedema to join them this summer intensified, particularly around January, the prospect of her leaving was not only a major concern for Arsenal, but also for the WSL as a whole.

The Netherlands star is undoubtedly one of the WSL's most marketable players and keeping one of the world's best strikers in the league will be welcome news for broadcasters and for the FA, as they strive to grow TV audiences and attendances.

It is understood PSG and Barcelona's contract offers were highly lucrative but a big part of Miedema's decision was based on the fact she believes the WSL to be the strongest league right now.

And Arsenal fans will be jubilant. She has previously made it clear she "wants to win titles" and her renewal indicates she believes she can lift silverware with Eidevall's team, who reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League this term but ended it with a third consecutive trophy-less campaign.

She has also noted improvements in the provisions for the women's team behind the scenes. Back in December, in an interview with Telegraph Sport, she said: "Arsenal has always been the club in England, I think the club has kind of let that slip over the last decade, [but] I’m happy to say that they definitely are moving into the right direction again." 

However, while multiple sources have declined to verify the length of Miedema's deal, it was reported earlier in May by The Athletic that she would be signing only a one-year extension. If that is the case, such a short-team contract would only offer Arsenal fans a temporary respite from yet more inevitable speculation about her future.

Miedema's previous contract, expiring this summer, was coming to an end at the same time as existing deals for two other of Europe's most-wanted strikers - PSG and France's Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Jennifer Hermoso of Barcelona and Spain.

Katoto and Hermoso's futures remain undecided for now, but all of Europe's top clubs will be monitoring their situations closely as any moves could trigger something of a domino effect of transfers in the women's game in the next couple of windows.