Izuchukwu Okosi
Arsenal forward Gabriel Martinelli on Thursday put pen to paper on a new contract at Arsenal taking his stay at the club to the summer of 2027.
The Gunners are expected to imminently announce the extension of the Brazilian’s contract with the club which puts to bed speculation that he might not continue his career at the Emirates.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelMarinelli has been a key component of Mikel Arteta’s squad and his initial deal at the club expired at the end of next season – the summer of 2024 – though the north London club had the option to trigger an extension until 2026.
That would have kept Martinelli on the same terms but Arsenal wanted to reward the youngster for his stellar performances with a bumper new deal, as well as secure his future for even longer.
The Athletic revealed that the 21-year-old has signed his new contract after agreeing a four-and-a-half year deal last week.
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According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal is not done there and will now push ahead with contract talks with two more of their young stars: Bukayo Saka and William Saliba.
The French centre-back, Saliba, only has 18 months left on his current contract and the Gunners have already triggered their extension option, doing so in December.
That had prompted fears that Saliba was not entirely convinced about continuing at the Emirates, given that Arsenal had been unable to tie him down to a long-term deal, but talks are continuing and the player himself insists he is enjoying life at the club.
Speaking last month, the defender said: ‘I am so happy here.
‘The club is speaking with my agent and me, the only thing I can do is (focus on my football). I am so happy here.’
Anglo-Nigerian, Bukayo Saka, is also expected to extend his stint with the Premier League leaders despite the interest of Manchester City to poach him from the Gunners.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
