ARSENAL are set for crunch talks with David Luiz ahead of the defender’s contract expiring at the end of the month.
Next Tuesday is the deadline for the Gunners to seal Luiz’s future with reports suggesting he wants a new two-year deal.
The club can propose a temporary extension until the end of the season or activate an automatic 12-month renewal clause inserted into the player’s contract.
However, according to the Mail, Arsenal do not want to pay Luiz his £120,000-a-week wages for another season.
The coronavirus pandemic is biting the club’s finances hard, prompting a ten per cent pay cut agreed by the vast majority of the squad during football’s shutdown.
A new contract on reduced terms may be on the table yet Mikel Arteta’s side still favour a single year for the 33-year-old.
By contrast, Luiz reportedly wants a two-year deal having been a regular throughout the Gunners’ turbulent season.
Kia Joorabchian, the Brazilian’s agent, insisted on Thursday that the issue will be resolved in the coming days.
And he alluded to the wider issue of club finances amid the pandemic crisis in explaining why the matter has dragged on for so long.
He told talkSPORT: “What I can tell you is the situation from Arsenal’s point of view will be resolved this week.
“June 22 is the deadline for most of the clubs to finish the season and beyond, irrespective of any other situation.
“It’s a case of allowing Arsenal to sort out everything that needs to be sorted out during this pandemic.
“There are several issues within the whole structure that will get resolved.”
Despite potentially being only days away from an exit, Luiz was given a chance to impress in Arsenal’s first game back on Wednesday.
Pablo Mari’s injury forced Arteta into bringing on the veteran defender after only 24 minutes.
By the 50th minute, Luiz had miscontrolled a pass to allow Raheem Sterling to score and dragged down Riyad Mahrez for a penalty, earning a red card as City made it 2-0.
The defender fronted up to the media after the final whistle, admitting “it was my fault”, but must now try and convince club bosses that he is worth a new deal.
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