With one week to go in the transfer window Arsenal have got themselves into a pretty positive position. Edu has already completed deals for Matt Turner, Marquinhos, Fabio Vieira, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko, while as many as 31 players have left the club in one shape or another this summer. Despite that though there is still plenty more to be done.
The club are hoping to complete a few more outgoings in the coming days. football.london understands that Nice's loan deal for Nicolas Pepe should be confirmed in the coming days, while Ainsley Maitland-Niles is attracting interest from Southampton among other clubs. football.london understands that Arsenal maintain the option to extend the England international's contract by another year, meaning that a loan remains a possibility although a permanent exit remains the preference.
With those two likely to leave that opens the door for more potential arrivals before the window closes on September 1st. Pedro Neto of Wolves has been linked heavily in the past few days, while Youri Tielemans remains a long-term target.
READ MORE: Pedro Neto doubt, Youri Tielemans bid and Arsenal's transfer window advantage
On top of that there are also contract extensions to be sorted among important players at the club. Gabriel Martinelli, William Saliba and Bukayo Saka all have two years left on their current deals and the Gunners would like to secure the long-term futures of all three.
With so much happening both on and off the pitch it felt like the perfect time for a Q and A with our chief Arsenal correspondent Kaya Kaynak on all things Arsenal. Here football.london takes a look back at some of the topics that were discussed.
Q: How likely is it that Saliba will extend his contract at Arsenal?
KK: I'd say at this point in time things are looking positive. William Saliba has really enjoyed his start to life in north London and the incredible reception he's received from the fans has certainly helped that. As far as his contract goes, with each passing game and impressive performance Saliba improves his negotiating stance as talks progress. He also improves his chances of going to the World Cup with France where Les Bleus are among the favourites. If Arsenal are smart, they'll try and get an extension sorted before that as being a World Cup winning defender who is a regular at Arsenal would mean Saliba could rightly demand some very high wages. As things stand the club are confident of getting him to commit his future, but in fairness you wouldn't expect them to say anything else at this stage.
Q: Do you think it is likely that we will bring in a winger and a midfielder, or considering there is only a week to go we might only see a winger come in?
KK: I certainly wouldn't rule it out as Arsenal have shown they're capable of completing moves late in the window before. Also it's worth noting that in both cases the Gunners have been scouting players for some time and much of the ground work has been done already. Take the Youri Tielemans deal for example. I wouldn't say it's a certainty, but I'd definitely say it's possible.
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