What’s the story?
Arsenal have been the epitome of consistency in recent years, whether is it finishing in the top 4 of the Premier League or getting knocked out of the Champions League in the round of 16 every year. However, at the moment the club is shrouded in uncertainty with the future of their manager Arsene Wenger and two of their biggest stars Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil still not certain.
But not all is lost at the Emirates Stadium. According to the Telegraph, Wenger has turned down a mouth-watering £30 million-a-year net offer from China in favour of staying at Arsenal and seeing out the remaining months of his contract.
Wenger has been at the helm of Arsenal for over 20 years now and has recently claimed that he will continue to manage next year, whether it is at Arsenal or at some other club. According to the report, Wenger received the astronomical offer from China soon after his comments on his future but has decided to give the Chinese Super League a miss – a proposition some of the best footballers in the world find hard to turn down.
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By turning down the world record offer, not only did Wenger give up on the opportunity to become the highest paid manager in the world but he would have earned twice as much as Pep Guardiola, who is currently the highest paid manager in the world and earns close to £15m per year.
Wenger’s current contract sees him pocket somewhere around £8m per year, while the new 2-year contract that the Arsenal board have offered him will see him earn £10m per year – should he decide to extend the stay. In short, Wenger had the opportunity to earn three times as much as he would earn if he extends his Arsenal contract but still he decided to stay at the Emirates.
The heart of the matter
Arsene Wenger’s current contract with the Gunners expires in the summer and the Frenchman has insisted that the team is currently focused on finishing the season strong and any decision on his future will be made in April or towards the end of the season.
Wenger’s contract situation has also affected the contract negotiations of superstars Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, who have only 18 months left on their respective deals. According to various reports, the duo want assurance over the future of Wenger, or want clarity as to who his replacement will be should he decide to walk away in the summer.
However, the Arsenal faithful do not share the board’s opinion that Wenger is the right man to take the club forward and have been voicing their opinions during the games and on social media. There is a growing resentment in the fans who want the Frenchman to leave the club in the summer after witnessing Arsenal falter, once again, towards the business end of the season.
What's next?
Arsene Wenger and the players would like to shift their focus from paper talk and focus on the upcoming match against Liverpool, followed by the do-or-die clash against Bayern Munich – where the Gunners need to overturn an impossible 5-1 deficit in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 clash.
The Gunners are still competing on three fronts – including the Champions League – and will be hoping to finish the season with at least an FA Cup, if this is to be the Frenchman’s last year in charge of the Gunners. The Arsenal faithful will be hoping that one of their greatest managers of all-time goes out on a high.
Sportskeeda’s Take
Chinese Super League clubs have shown that they have the financial muscle to pull off deals of this magnitude having made Carlos Tevez the highest paid player in world football. There is no denying that Arsene Wenger is one of the most sought after and highly-rated managers of all-time but it is hard to envisage the Frenchman bringing the curtains down on an illustrious career like his in a country like China – a rather newbie in the world of football.
It is a growing feeling amongst football fans and pundits that Wenger will walk away from his beloved club at the end of the current season but until then he will give it his all. If he does walk away from the Gunners it is unlikely that he will move to China and would rather opt to move to a European giant – cue Barcelona, PSG or Real Madrid.
