Talks between Arsenal and Mohamed Elneny over a new contract have stalled, throwing his future at the Emirates Stadium past this summer into doubt, according to football.london.
Elneny has entered the final year of his current deal in north London and had claimed he was willing to extend his terms. But the two sides have reached an impasse in negotiations, and it is unclear if a resolution can be found.
Arsenal are looking to sign an experienced midfielder to strengthen Mikel Arteta’s options this summer with Roma pursuing Granit Xhaka. The Gunners are also set to bring in Albert Sambi Lokonga from Anderlecht, but view the Belgian more as one for the future.
Any arrival after that of Lokonga would be viewed as the first-choice partner for Thomas Partey going forward. Thus, throwing Elneny’s role into question, should Arsenal offer the Egyptian a new contract or extend his £50,000-per-week terms.
Elneny’s agent, William D’Avila, has also already be shopping the 28-year-old around to sound out any potential interest, per Sporx. He contacted Super Lig giants Galatasaray in March, who the one-time Besiktas loanee would be open to joining.
Arsenal last extended Elneny’s contract in 2018, two years after joining from Basel in a £5m transfer. But he was never a consistent regular in the Premier League squad at the Emirates Stadium until last season.
Arteta awarded Elneny an Arsenal career-best 23 league outings last term. He also started more games (17) than he had previously featured for in any individual top-flight season, with a best of 14 achieved in 2016/17. His previous best for starts was 11 of 13 in 2017/18.
Arsenal risk losing a key part of Arteta’s depth in Elneny
Arsenal would risk losing a key part of Arteta’s depth by failing to agree on a new contract with Elneny. The Spaniard clearly rated what the 79-cap international could offer last season and would value that in some capacity next term.
Arteta also noted in May how Elneny is well-received by the squad after scoring his first ever Premier League goal. “You could see the reaction of his teammates,” the Gunners boss said, via football.london. “He’s a really popular guy in the dressing room and he totally deserves everything he gets because he’s a fantastic player and person to work with.”
But Elneny may be eager to secure something more than a backup role, hence the impasse in negotiations with Arsenal. After six years with the Gunners, he is still not the first or second choice in his position. Which is not ideal for a player likely entering his prime years.
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