WILSHERE TO AGREE NEW DEAL...BUT TAKE PAY CUT
ARSENE WENGER expects a quick conclusion to the Jack Wilshere contract saga and is increasingly confident the midfielder is close to agreeing to stay at the Emirates. Wilshere has been offered a new deal by the club but it involves taking a pay cut on his basic wage, which is currently around £100,000 per week. Arsenal want him to sign an incentivised £80,000-a-week contract that would include a host of performance-related add-ons, allowing him to make up some of the shortfall. But Arsenal are running out of time to secure Wilshere’s future as the 26-year-old can leave for nothing at the end of the season when his current deal expires. Wilshere’s advisors have been pushing for a higher basic salary, but the club are confident an agreement is close. The Arsenal academy graduate’s preference is to stay at the Emirates, especially as he has fought his way back into manager Wenger’s plans following a number of ankle injuries and a season on loan at Bournemouth. If things do not work out, however, a number of foreign sides — including Marseille — are monitoring Wilshere’s situation. Talks are also ongoing with Aaron Ramsey but the Welshman’s deal does not expire until the end of next season, meaning Wilshere’s situation is far more pressing. Wenger said: ‘I’m positive because I want Jack to stay. I do the maximum I can to make him happy. ‘With Jack it is now. ‘With Aaron, if we lose two weeks or three weeks, it doesn’t matter much.’