Arsenal's Mohamed Elneny celebrates scoring their first goal
Arsenal journalist for PA Sport Mark Mann-Bryans says the club are ‘excepting’ to trigger Mohamed Elneny’s contract extension, with an announcement soon.
The Lowdown: ‘Significant’ injury
Arsenal confirmed on their official website this last week that Elneny has suffered a ‘significant’ injury to his right knee in training, and will now be out for an ‘extended period’.
He had missed the last three games in all competitions, and also suffered from a thigh injury earlier in the campaign.
The Gunners signed Jorginho from Chelsea on Transfer Deadline Day as cover in the centre of midfield, as it is not clear exactly how long Elneny will now be sidelined for.
The Latest: Contract extension expected
Taking to Twitter, Mann-Bryans says that the North London club are however ‘expecting’ to trigger Elneny’s one-year contract extension despite his injury, with his current deal at the Emirates Stadium set to expire in the summer:
“Expecting Arsenal to trigger Mohamed Elneny’s option to extend his contract by a further 12 months. Conversations underway and injury has not had an impact on the decision, which could be announced in the next week or so.”
Should Arsenal extend Mohamed Elneny's contract?
Yes
No
The Verdict: Right call?
Even though Elneny is injured at the moment, and it may be tempting to let his contract run down, Mikel Arteta’s team are right to trigger his one-year extension.
Even though Jorginho came in, the Gunners let Albert Sambi Lokonga go out on loan to Crystal Palace, still leaving them fairly short in midfield, meaning that the 30-year-old will still have use in the squad unless they further strengthen in the middle of the park.
They did try and sign Brighton and Hove Albion’s Moises Caicedo, while West Ham United’s Declan Rice is a known summer target, but until they bring these players in, Elneny can still feature under Arteta.
Nonetheless, if they do bring in one or two more midfielders in the summer, then at least they would have protected the Egyptian’s value, and so could sell him on for a reasonable transfer fee.
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