EXCLUSIVE: Arteta in line for substantial pay rise as Arsenal contract talks progress

Steve Kay

• Updated: 16 Feb 2024 06:57 GMT
• 3 min read

Exclusive

Arsenal are currently in contract talks with manager Mikel Arteta, FootballTransfers can exclusively reveal.

Arteta last signed a new deal with the club in 2022 but the ongoing success of the Spaniard has led the Gunners board to initiate discussions to tie down the 41-year-old to fresh terms.

Arsenal’s aim is to secure a new three-year deal for the manager that will be made official before the beginning of the 2024/25 season.

FootballTransfers has been told that Arteta is in line for a pay rise following his success with the Gunners. While it is unclear exactly what he is asking for or being offered, the figure will be substantially higher than his current salary of £9.5 million.

Sources indicate that Arteta has been playing down his personal situation and the prospect of signing a new deal because he does not want the focus around him and not the team, which is in hot pursuit of the Premier League title once again.

Arsenal wanted long-term commitment

The Gunners, meanwhile, had been eager to tie Arteta down to a lengthier contract than the three years that the Spaniard is currently on course for. The Emirates side were eager to have him commit his long-term future to the club, although just how long the Arsenal board envisioned is unclear.

It’s believed that the club's vision was for Arteta to guide through a group of promising young players, including Ethan Nwaneri, Reuell Walters and Myles Lewis-Skelly, from the academy and into the first team.

Arteta has been in charge of Arsenal since December 2019 and has overseen more than 200 matches in the dugout of the Emirates club.

He has picked up 127 victories in the 213 games he has managed, with a win percentage of 59.6%.

Under Arteta’s guidance, Arsenal have won the 2020 FA Cup and two Community Shields while they were Premier League runners-up to Manchester City in the 2022/23 season.