Wenger gets two-year deal to stay at Arsenal

Arsene Wenger will stay on as Arsenal coach, earning a new two-year contract despite the north London soccer team’s missing out on Champions League qualification.

Arsenal said the 67-year-old Frenchman secured the extension after a full review of the club’s activities “to identify areas for improvement to build a sustained title challenge” was conducted with Chief Executive Ivan Gazidis.

“I love this club and I am looking forward to the future with optimism and excitement,” Wenger said. Wenger’s latest contract was due to expire this year but after holding talks with Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke, who also owns the NFL’s Rams, Wenger’s deal will extend his stay at the club to nearly 23 years.

Kroenke, who has increasingly been the target of abuse from fans, opted to keep the status quo — a decision that is sure to divide opinion.

“Our ambition is to win the Premier League and other major trophies in Europe,” Kroenke said. “It’s what the fans, players, staff, manager and board expect, and we won’t rest until that is achieved. Arsene is the best person to help us make that happen.”

Wolfsburg signed United States defender John Anthony Brooks for a reported fee of 20 million euros ($22.4 million) from Bundesliga rival Hertha Berlin, a record transfer for an American player. The fee eclipses the reported $13 million paid by Premier League club Sunderland for Jozy Altidore in 2013 from AZ Alkmaar.

Wolfsburg, which only escaped relegation through a playoff, said Brooks would get a contract through 2022.

Brooks, who was born in Berlin, joined Hertha’s youth setup when he was 14 in 2007. He made his debut for the senior team in the second division in the 2012-13 season.