Mikel Arteta has given the latest update on the futures of Arsenal's three players whose contracts are set to expire this summer.
The Gunners rounded off the season on Sunday with a 5-1 victory over Everton courtesy of goals from Gabriel Martinelli, Eddie Nketiah, Cedric, Gabriel and Martin Odegaard. Sadly it was not enough to help them secure Champions League football for next season as Spurs came through their match at Norwich with a 5-0 victory.
Nketiah, Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah all featured in the game despite the fact that their deals at the Emirates expire at the end of this season. After the game Arteta revealed that decisions had already been made on all of their futures.
READ MORE: What Dele did to the Arsenal fans as Lacazette waves goodbye: 3 moments missed vs Everton
"I will speak to the three players now or tomorrow and after that we need to start to move on," the Spaniard said in his post-match press conference. "We have clear ideas of what we want to do."
When pressed on if the decisions had been made over the trio's future, Arteta went on to reveal that the club had decided their course action with each player some time ago. "It’s been decided but it’s very difficult to communicate it," he said.
"What they deserve is to have what they a little bit of what they had today. To do it earlier, one way or another, with three decisions like that, is very, very awkward and it could affect the team. As a club we have to do the right thing in the right moment and sometimes to combine those two is not easy at all. But we will try to do the right thing."
football.london understands that Lacazette is set to leave north London and the player appeared to wave goodbye to the Arsenal fans in the aftermath of Sunday's victory. Reports meanwhile have suggested that Elneny could be offered a new deal, while Arteta once again reiterated his desire to keep Nketiah.
"When you see Eddie training the way he trains he doesn’t even need to play," the Spaniard said. "You know that you have a player there is going to help you. You look at his numbers with the amount of games played and it’s been terrific."
