"He is going to be a top top player" - Mikel Arteta hopeful of new contract deal for 22-year-old Arsenal star

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed he wants striker Eddie Nketiah to remain at the club amidst a contract standoff.

Contract talks between Arsenal and Nketiah have stalled and the 22-year old has subsequently been linked with a free transfer next summer.

The forward put in a good performance against Leeds United on Tuesday as Arsenal emerged 2-0 winners to progress to the quarterfinals of the EFL Cup. Nketiah rubber-stamped the result in the 69th minute after capitalizing on a wayward Liam Cooper header.

After the game, Arteta said he was happy with Nketiah’s display, and wants the England under-21 international to remain at the Emirates.

“We had a situation in the summer that we tried to resolve and we couldn't either way. That contract situation is more and more common in football for where we are coming from with Covid and a lot of the issues that we have to resolve,” Arteta said.

“I have full belief that he is going to be a top, top player and hopefully at Arsenal. I'm happy to have him, he is our player, I regard him really highly and from my side I want him to stay. I'm delighted to see the performance he had. He totally deserved it. He has other players who play in that position and he has a personal situation but I try to leave that aside.”

Nketiah could leave Arsenal for nothing after failing to secure a move last summer

Eddie Nketiah was linked with a move to Crystal Palace this past summer, but the move collapsed as the Eagles signed Odsonne Edouard instead.

The Gunners reportedly initially wanted a fee of around £20million, but despite dropping their asking price to £12million, they failed to offload him.

If the Gunners fail to tie him down to a new contract before January, he will be able to negotiate a pre-contract with non-English clubs. He could then leave for free in the summer of 2022.

It remains to be seen if he will move abroad, though, as a few Premier League clubs remain keen on the forward. Aston Villa and Brentford are interested in the 22-year-old, and Leeds United, where he had a loan spell, are also monitoring the situation.