Arsenal
have committed £70million to secure the futures of Jack Wilshere, Alex
Oxlade-Chamberlain, Kieran Gibbs, Aaron Ramsey and Carl Jenkinson, who
have all signed new five-year deals.
The
improved contracts mean Wilshere’s pay goes from £50,000 to £80,000 a
week, Oxlade-Chamberlain’s has trebled to £60,000 a week and Gibbs
has had a rise of £10,000 a week to around £50,000 a week. It is believed Ramsey now earns £60,000 a week while Jenkinson will earn about £35,000 a week, an increase of £15,000.
has had a rise of £10,000 a week to around £50,000 a week. It is believed Ramsey now earns £60,000 a week while Jenkinson will earn about £35,000 a week, an increase of £15,000.
As Sportsmail exclusively
revealed on Wednesday morning, five of their new-look British core have
signed long-term contracts. And the north London club confirmed the
news in the afternoon.
Manager
Arsene Wenger of Arsenal stands over (L-R) Carl Jenkinson, Aaron
Ramsey, Jack Wilshere, Kieran Gibbs and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Manager
Arsène Wenger said: 'We are delighted that these five young players
have all signed new long-term contracts. The plan is to build a team
around a strong basis of young players, in order to get them to develop
their talent at the Club.
'Jack
is certainly the best known, the leader of this group - but the other
four players are exceptional footballers, and we’re very happy that we
could conclude their new deals at the same time.
Wenger
continued: 'Gibbs, Jenkinson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ramsey and Wilshere
represent a core of the squad and it’s an extension for a long period
for all of them.
Out
on the town: Jack Wilshere (left) joined Kieran Gibbs and Thomas
Vermaelen (right) last night for the Arsenal players' Christmas party
Joining in: Contract rebel Theo Walcott was joined by Melanie Slade (right) as Gervinho looks ready to party (left)
'I’m
a strong believer in stability and I believe when you have a core of
British players, it’s always easier to keep them together and that’s
what we’ll try to achieve going forward.'
Arsenal’s push to keep their best British talent indicates a deliberate shift in Wenger’s thinking.
After
basing his sides around foreign players for years, the manager seems to
have had a change of heart after the likes of Robin van Persie, Cesc
Fabregas, Samir Nasri and Gael Clichy all left the Emirates Stadium.
Speaking
after the thumping win at Reading, Wenger said: ‘We have a core of good
young English players and I hope we will be able to build a team around
them and that they can achieve something together.’
Another
British player who continues to negotiate a new deal at the club is
Theo Walcott. The striker rejected a deal worth £75,000 a week in
August, and hopes to get closer to £100,000.
Walcott joined his team-mates yesterday at two Michelin star restaurant L'Atelier for the team's Christmas party.
Fresh after thrashing Reading 5-2 on Monday evening, the players seemed in high spirits as they hit the town in central London.
Golascorers
Lukas Podolski, Walcott and hat-trick hero Santi Cazorla may have had
greater cause to celebrate after helping the side bouncing back from a
humiliating 1-0 defeat in the Capital One Cup last week to League Two
outfit Bradford.
Loving it: Olivier Giroud arrives for the party (right) as Bacary Sagna (left) is greeted by photographers
Up for it: Lukasz Fabianski (left) and Lukas Podolski arrive to get the party started in London
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