Arsenal star Mohamed Elneny agreed to take a lower wage to sign a new contract with the Premier League leaders. The midfielder agreed to sign a new deal until 2024 this Tuesday.
That is according to football.london, which reports Arsenal have handed Elneny a new one-year contract. His previous terms at Emirates Stadium were due to expire at the end of this season. But the Gunners will keep the 30-year-old in north London for at least another year.
Arsenal sporting director Edu renegotiated the terms of Elneny’s previous contract with the 91-cap Egypt star’s agent. The Gunners strived to do right by their midfielder with him the longest-serving player at the team. Arsene Wenger signed Elneny from Basel back in 2016.
Wenger paid £7.5m for Elneny, who has since amassed 155 appearances for Arsenal across all competitions. He has further provided the north London natives six goals and 10 assists. Yet the midfielder has rarely been a first-choice player for the Gunners amid a fully-fit side.
Arsenal may also be without Elneny beyond the start of next season due to his knee injury. Football.london adds that Mikel Arteta may not have the midfielder back this term. It was already expected that he may miss the rest of this term with the issue suffered in training.
Elneny required surgery for his knee injury but Arsenal have rewarded his commitment to the club with a new contract. Yet Edu sought to lower his salary from the £49k-a-week he had earned since moving to England. Football.london does not cite his new salary, though.
While Fabrizio Romano has also reported that Elneny has rejected offers to leave Arsenal to sign a new contract. Clubs in Italy and Spain had explored his situation in north London ahead of the summer market. Yet he chose to stay with a manager who appreciates him.
“What Mo transmits to the team is special,” Arteta noted, via the Arsenal website, in 2020. “He has this energy as a person. He goes in the room and he creates that atmosphere.”
Source: hitc.com
