Saliba’s Contract Extension: A Win for Arsenal
William Saliba has signed a new four-year contract to remain at Arsenal until 2027, Arsenal have confirmed. On the surface, it’s great news for the Gunners as the French defenders joins Bukayo Saka, Aaron Ramsdale, Gabriel Martinelli, and Reiss Nelson in committing their long futures to Arsenal.
Unearthing Concerns: A Deeper Look into the Deals
But dig a little deeper, and take a long-term view, and there is reason for concern around these deals.
here’s no question that Saka, Martinelli, and Saliba are hugely talented young players, but the simple fact is that as yet they have yet to truly achieve real success in the game. The only trophy won by the group is the FA Cup that Saka and Nelson won in 2020 while sitting on the bench.
Arsenal’s Financial Commitment: The Cost of Contract Extensions
Arsenal have committed huge financial resources to these contract extensions and may well have set a bad precedent that could have significant ramifications, some of which have already been felt.
Martinelli, for example, finally put together his first good season as a Gunner scoring 15 goals in the league and most importantly staying fit. In February Arsenal saw fit to double his wages to £180k per week. At the time he scored it, he had 7 goals for the season and only 25 in his Arsenal career.
Saka is an outrageous talent, perhaps the best English player of his generation, and has put together two excellent seasons for Arsenal now but, per reports by David Ornstein, his new deal will pay him £200k per week with the potential to rise to £300k per week with incentives. That triples what he was earning last season.
Saliba’s new deal, again based on Ornstein’s reporting, will also pay him £200k per week. That is five times what he earned last season. Last season being his first season in an Arsenal shirt after spending two years on loan.
Ramsdale also had his wages doubled, only two years after arriving at the club, while Reiss Nelson was handed a £100k per week contract to stop him leaving as a free agent. Last summer Eddie Nketiah was given the same amount for the same reason.
Potential Impact: Arsenal’s Future Financial Burden
Add to this Kai Havertz arriving on a reported £340k per week salary, and the likelihood that Declan Rice will receive similar, and then consider the forthcoming negotiations with club captain Martin Odegaard who will probably want the same, and this Arsenal team will become really expensive really quickly.
Setting Precedents: Future Contract Negotiations for Young Stars
Arsenal spent a lot of money paying off high earners while terminating their contracts in an attempt to massive cut their wage bill a couple of years ago, so for now they can afford to carry these new deals. But these new deals aren’t so much the issue, it’s what comes next.
Saka, Martinelli, and Saliba have only signed four-year deals, meaning that in two years’ time, they will be up for new contracts again, alongside Gabriel Jesus. Given that Arsenal have, for their three young stars, handed out such massive contracts at such young ages what will they have to pay those players in two years? £300k rising to £400k for Saka? £280k for Martinelli? £300k for Saliba?
And how long will those deals be? Another four years perhaps, meaning that in 2027 they’ll be looking for new deals again, on further improved terms. The issue isn’t the deals being handed out, the issue is the ramifications these contracts will have on future contracts. Saliba’s talks stalled after the Saka deal, likely because he raised his demands after seeing what his team-mate had been given.
The Odegaard negotiations will be very interesting because as club captain, and arguably the best player at the club right now, he will likely want to be the highest earner. The reported Havertz contract is worth over £220k per week more than Odegaard currently earns.
Next summer Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ben White will be up for new deals and will have seen what their teammates have been given and will likely begin negotiations asking for similar.
Arsenal’s Position: The Impact of Premium Wages on Club’s Reputation
Arsenal are sending a message that they are willing to pay premium wages, which existing players and new signings are all, therefore, going to demand, and perhaps they’ll become a team who wins multiple major honours and sees significant financial growth but as of right now, they sit a distant sixth in the Premier League revenue table, closer to seventh-placed West Ham than fourth-placed Chelsea.
The Gunners are desperate for success. They want to end their Premier League drought, and they want to bring home that first-ever European Cup. But they are now paying their players as if they have already won those competitions, and those players will likely want even more if and when they do win them.
It’s a risky move by the Gunners and one that Edu better hope he doesn’t come to regret.
“but the simple fact is that as yet they have yet to truly achieve real success in the game.”
Arsenals collapse when Saliba got injured speaks a lot more about the ability of Saliba compared to a squad member who got a EPL medal for being a sub.
“It’s a risky move by the Gunners and one that Edu better hope he doesn’t come to regret.”
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“£200k per week with the potential to rise to £300k per week with incentives.”
50% bonus for doing your job well. Well done Edu! (What’s this about hoping for something?) If Saka meets those targets then his value will increase and the team has better chance of winning silverware. Such an increase to wage isn’t to be ignored as this can continue to encourage players to push themselves and not relax after a new deal… Like some other players may have in the past. Foden is paid over £200k per week by City. Grealish got £300k per week and was 25 at the time, coming from the team with so many trophies… Vila. If Saka doesn’t perform then the club pays less than what other top teams would have. Double well done to Edu.
“Given that Arsenal have, for their three young stars, handed out such massive contracts at such young ages what will they have to pay those players in two years? £300k rising to £400k for Saka? £280k for Martinelli? £300k for Saliba?”
If they perform well and increase our chances of silverware along with considering how wages in football are not slowing down… Why not?
If they do not perform well and drop out of the starting lineup then they go on the potential sale list while we still got 2 years contract with the player. As the contract is only 4 years and the players know that they can renegotiate in 2 years then this is extra encouragement to keep being their best so they can ‘demand’ more. Add into this that the lower base salary is easier to beat than the bonus one, which wouldn’t be met if not playing due to performance dropping. This can work in Edu favour when looking to sell.
Manchester City make double the revenue Arsenal do. They can afford to pay players those high wages. They’re also guaranteed to be the Champions League every season, which Arsenal are not.
The base salaries are not low, they are extremely high for such young players who have achieved nothing in the game. It’s amusing that you think the incentives are purely performance based, most of them will be appearance based.
They will not work in Edu’s favour when looking to sell. He’s done a poor job with these contract renewals, as he has with negotiating transfer fees. Always pays the Premium.
Also, Phil Foden has achieved far more in the game than any player at Arsenal, with FIVE League titles, six domestic cups and a CL. So City paying him that money is justified.