adminLONDON. — English Premiership soccer side Arsenal will have a £100 million transfer budget this summer but it is now expected that Arsène Wenger will wait until the end of the season before signing a new contract. The club remain extremely confident that Wenger will extend his deal, probably by three more years, but there is a growing acceptance that he will not interrupt his preparations for the final two months of the season to deal with contract negotiations.
Wenger has indicated a definite desire to stay in talks with Ivan Gazidis, the club’s chief executive, but has always said that results would determine whether he felt that it was right to sign a deal that would take him into a third decade at the club.
Arsenal are favourites to win the FA Cup and so end a nine-year wait for silverware, while the derby win against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday also means that they remain in contention for what would be a third “double” of Wenger’s tenure. The flip side, however, is that failing to win a trophy from this position would arguably amount to the biggest single disappointment of Wenger’s 18 years at the club.
Wenger has often suggested that he would not want to stay if he felt that he had underperformed or lost significant support from the club’s fan base.
Although Paris St-Germain and Barcelona could be realistic options this summer, it is understood that Wenger’s clear intention is to finish the season strongly with Arsenal and lead them into a new era of success.
Wenger reaches the unprecedented landmark on Saturday of 1 000 games as an Arsenal manager.
“It is absolutely unique,” midfielder Tomas Rosicky said. “I don’t think that anyone will repeat something like that again. He is a legend for this club.”
Whatever happens this season, there is also a very clear feeling within Arsenal that they are entering a new period when they will be financially equipped to again challenge regularly to win the English Premier League title.
This is because key sponsorship deals that were crucial to secure the funding for the Emirates Stadium have been renewed and the club’s revenue streams will receive a year-on-year boost of around £70 million.
The club have also continued to benefit from property development around the old Highbury Stadium, with sites in Holloway Road and Hornsey Road expected to realise around £10 million. Income of £20 million has also been generated last year in relation to the sale of the Queensland Road site. There has been a further three per cent rise in ticket prices for 2014-15. — The Telegraph.
Online Reporter