It’s being reported that Arsenal have offered Jack Wilshere a new contract, but the structure of the deal is such that the midfielder will see his basic salary reduced, with a number of incentives built in.
With question marks over his fitness, the club have offered him a smaller weekly wage than he currently earns, but with bonuses for the number of appearances he makes and his performances he could surpass that with the new contract.
Understand Arsenal have offered a new deal to Jack Wilshere. The offer is less money than his current deal but it's heavily incentivised. #AFC
— Ian Dennis (@Iandennisbbc) January 16, 2018
Wilshere has spoken frequently about how much he wants to stay – going so far as to express his desire to club captain – but Arsene Wenger has made it clear that it will be down to him to accept what’s on offer.
Speaking in December, the Arsenal manager said, “I believe that, if we can meet a point of agreement financially, he will want to stay.”
The risk, of course, is that despite this kind of offer making sense on an objective level, Arsenal run the risk of losing Wilshere to bigger offers from clubs who can afford to push the boat out because of his availability on a free transfer come June.
They would also have to assume the risk of his injury record, but you can be sure there’d be no shortage of suitors for his services. Will his loyalty to Arsenal and love of the club make the difference?
We’ll see.
I feel sad for him but i do hope he signs and stay.
all the directors should sign the same type of package too
top 4 finish get your pay check
top 2, get some bonus
5th and below, a letter of gratitude.
I was thinking P45 for 5th but yours works too.
This.
The letter of gratitude is important. Until we’re 8th or below. Then we can avoid that too.
That should be more for the manager and coaches.
The board somewhat but they also have to be weighed on non football related factors like marketing and overall finances of the club. But great idea.:D
We should find a way to put you on board of director
If Xhaka and Drinkwater are £35m players in today’s market so is Jack. So considering he’s free to go anywhere in 6 months time offering him £150,000 a week on a 4 year contract is still considerably cheaper than buying a replacement, the only question is do we want to keep him. When he signed his last deal only a select few clubs could afford the £100k a week he gets paid, now every club in the league can pay that and most could offer significantly more for the right player on a free transfer. If he’s not going to… Read more »
Xhaka was only rated 35 million by Arsenal. No other team were bidding on him so I’m sure we could have got him for lower….
Who knows but how much would it cost to replace Jack?
I don’t see a possible replacement for Jack. Not many can do what he does.
Capability you can find.
its the level of passion he has for this club that he has grown up with.
I believe in Barcelona they like to call it DNA.
Wengerout superJack IN.
We got in early on Granit.
But 35m is about right for an International with good potential and at a good age just before peak years. In yesterday’s market probably a 15m quid player.
Realistically only 8-12 clubs can afford a player on that wage. Outside the top 6 not many can afford more then 1 maybe 2 players in the 100K range. Biggest problem i have on the offer is if he is making 90K now and the offer is for less than that lets say 70K? How high does it go if the incentives are met? Healthy Jack with his skills are worth like you said easy 150-200K especially on the free. Obviously that is the big question can he stay healthy so maybe the incentives would easily boost that wage up… Read more »
Any established premier league club can if they’re not paying a transfer fee. If Crystal Palace can pay £30m for Benteke they can pay Jack £150,000 a week for 4 years, it works out as an outlay of £31.2m. Same goes for Bournemouth, Southampton, West Ham and Watford, all teams that have paid out transfer fees in the £20m mark. This is why i’m not sure why Arsenal have decided to take a stand in this particular case. When a player is in the last 6 months of their contracts you’re not negotiating a new contract you’re trying to sign… Read more »
The problem is that the Jack we know is constantly injured and not with just nagging injuries but major injuries and that would make anyone gun shy.
I get what you are saying. You can also argue the Benteke deal is for a specifically a goal scorer and those you pay a premium for.
Lets say Crystal Palace did pay that wage on a free for Jack and he gets hurt it would devastate Palace. I would say no I don’t think they would but of course technically they can.
Why have we offered less? Two words: josh kroenke. This is his style… he did the same with Chauncey Billups while at the denver nuggets. Billups is a denver native who wanted to play here, and because he was aging, yet wanted a new contract, kroenke traded him along with Anthony to the knicks. The Nuggets have been terrible since.
If this were an extension with two years remaining this would make business sense, given our failure to secure Sanchez and the potential departure if Ozil, this will inevitable add to the negativity around the club and the media circus surrounding our general transfer approach. Jack is one of the few players who wears the badge and knows what it means, lets hope he goes for this…
Offering players deals long before their contract expires doesn’t automatically guarantee they’ll sign them. We can say what we like about contracts policy but its not a one way thing. The concern for me is that we can’t really compete with filthy rich clubs and offer competitive pay to players.
Only 2 or three of them in this country and we’ve shown plenty of times we can beat them. Semi and final for starters. But at the moment it seems as if it’s attitude that’s missing.
Fuck off Sanchez (today) and Kroenke (asap)
@LEFT08 Arsenal fans need to stop with this whole idea that we are total paupers. It is not the case. We have absolutely truck loads of cash. If you don’t believe me, go and look at our financial information, its all online. There is so much money available. Also people need to stop worrying about FFP rules. Back in 2015 Platini publicly stated that UEFA were going to relax their regulations. Hence you’ve got PSG signing Neymar for £200M, Barcelona signing Coutinho for £145M, and City spending pretty much £1.5B over the last few seasons. FFP doesn’t really matter anymore.… Read more »
If you looked at it already how much is available for transfers? wages?
I’m not an accountant so I’m assuming its financials are in accountant speak? lol
Seems like the right move for me, whether or not we get “gazumped” by another club is a risk we have to take. Really don’t want to see Jack sitting on high wages for five years of injuries, don’t want to see him go to another club and stay fit either. Catch 22.
I don’t really care what wages he’s on as it isn’t my money, I’d rather we got this one over the line quickly. I wouldn’t have minded half as much about getting it done super quickly if it weren’t for the ozil sanchez saga; why even run the risk of losing wilsh with this deal. This just proves again that this club has no urgency.
Really hope he signs on though
I just don’t see the logic of this point of view at all.
It *literally* is your money if you attend games, buy club merchandise, pay for a Sky or BTTV subscription (even if it’s just entertainment, it still subsidises their football offering) or make any other financial contribution.
Even if you don’t contribute financially, if the club is spending money on wages to players not playing regularly, they’re pissing away money that could be spent on another player. It’s precisely this reason we’re stuck in the mess we’re in right now: too many players being overpaid for their ability.
As it happens I think that a contract paying a lower (but still generous) basic wage with performance- and attandance-based incentives could work nicely for more of our players. One thing often overlooked is the impact that not playing can have on players. Many have spoken out in the past about feeling like they’re nicking a living being paid vast sums whilst injured. They feel tremendous guilt. A wage structure based on appearances might alleviate some of those feelings, whilst offering an opportunity to earn even higher wages when fit and healthy. I like Jack. He’s a good footballer, he… Read more »
I think lower basic wages with more incentives would work nicely for us.
Can’t see many agents going for it though…
Well this seems smart enough ! Sign the thing wilshere .
What a load of crap.
It’s not YOUR money, Wenger!
Pay the guy what he’s worth.
He is being paid what he’s worth. He’s got the talent but he’s injury prone too.
Wilshere will sign..just wait..also, even Wenger is speaking about it to the media, it is not him to decide Jack’s value. Must be some department of valuation or something. You really think everything is ran by Wenger considering he is always on the training ground everyday?
Yeah lets go and play hard-ball with the one player willing to sign a contract. Nice.
I get the counter argument. Think its greatly outweighed by the outgoings ahead.
given his potential, recent performances and commitment to Arsenal this feels slightly humiliating.
If his commitment to Arsenal is contingent on a pay increase that really isn’t commitment. Where was his commitment last year when he requested to go out on loan after losing his spot in the England squad?
Two months of good performances do not cancel out 5 years of non-stop injuries. The offer is perfectly reasonable. If Jack is as committed as his cult-like followers claim, he will accept the offer.
well said
If he does stay fit, like he probably feels he will, then the lucrative bonuses and built-in incentives are practically his. Wilshere’s case is different because of injury, but I think in general we need more performance-based incentive-laden contracts for players.
This just shows what a joke of a club we are and what a man Jack is. If one does not believe there’s something wrong with the manager and the board, this yet another reason to believe the blatant and disgraceful truth.
No it doesn’t. It says the club is willing to pay him more if he manages to play a good portion of the season, if he gets injured like he tends to then he is still paid handsomely but less than what he has been on. Perfectly reasonable positions.
It just shows what a joke of a fan we have here.
No our negotiators are the joke. Oh and the board and manager.
Sign da ting Jackie boy! Also there’s the small matter of surrendering the #10 to Özil – I support it if it makes Öz to sign. My ideal situation (a man can dream right?)
Özil – 10
Jack – 7
Mikhi – 11
Malcolm – 14
Give jack the #4 shirt when Per retires. Bigger honor then the #10 imo
I’d give Jacky boy the number 4. He deserves that, and while we’re at it, we could make him into our deep midfielder instead of xhaka. Partner him with n’Zonzi too.
I’d really love to see this happen
Auba lacazette mkhitaryan
Ozil
Wilshere zonzi
Kola kos mustafi bellerin
I have an absolute and irrational loathing of proposed future 11s in comments sections.
Nzonzi is a waste of time, and he’s already stated publicly he isn’t interested in joining us.
If we’re signing an actual defensive midfielder, which I don’t see us doing anyhow, Marcos llorente from real madrid is a better buy as he’s still in his early 20s.
Malcom is a no go… If anywhere, he’s off to Looserpool…
Jack’s the 10 for me.
So what position is Ozil…?
Unfortunately, it’s probably gonna be left wing-back at Old Trafford.
Not a winger wenger
IF he wants to be!
11 and 12 have always been my favourite numbers since 12 stopped being the subs number.
who gives a fuck what number is on the back of the shirt? the important part is what’s on the front
Good old Arsenal, arguing over the pennies as the pounds walk out the door.
OT – There was an interesting Guardian Long Read on how Man City are being run and how the City Football Group are building up a global business plan with City as the centrepiece, it’s unethical as hell and is ruining football but they know exactly what they’re up to and are thinking decades ahead. Arsenal are outdated and have fucking Kroenke who has zero interest in football and thinks of financial year to financial year. Unfortunately Wenger’s time has gone and we’re not in the same league as City, and won’t be for some time unless things change drastically.… Read more »
Kroenke, like most american predatory billionaires, thinks in 3 month increments and earnings statements. These people are a cancer and their greed is destroying people’s lives.
In regards to arsenal, the sooner kroenke is gone the better. He’s yet to take me up on my offer of $1 for his stake in the club, but I consider it a fair offer because of what he already has in the bank.
The silly season needs to end quickly. I have never seen such a January. I hope Wenger and the new contract guys make something remarkable though. Otherwise, we just stick with our current crop of players and push for the Europa Trophy. Forget everything else. We only have one job to do now. And Wenger seems to be taking it down the drain with all this debacle. As for the Wilshere situation, I think its been handled well. Arsenal needs to have a ruthless streak in its contract negotiations. Very soon, I suspect players like Cazorla (We miss him so… Read more »
Is there a top 6 club in the PL that wants Wilshere enough to make a better offer? Some top clubs might want him as a squad player but I can’t see him as a clear starter at any other top 6 club. A club like Everton might offer more money along with guaranteed playing time but I don’t see such an offer coming from a top 6 club.
In any event, Arsenal’s approach is a sound one in light of Jack’s injury history. If he doesn’t like it, he’s free to “hit the road Jack”.
My biggest concern is how Arsene rates/uses him assuming he’s fit enough. I never believed him nor will I ever believe him when he says he’s suited to play on the front 3. That includes the number 9 position if you think about it. We’ve all seen what Jack can do in that central midfield and I believed and strongly believe Arsene’s dilema is having him and Ramsey fit at the same time. People will say push Ramsey to the number 10 position but despite having the highest assists thus far, quick turns and releasing his teammates early aren’t his… Read more »
Am gonna get crucified for this but somebody has got to say it. Arsene has got an eternal boner for Ramsey. Performance don’t matter, Jack could bleed his heart out on the pitch, give it his all and Wenger would still pick Ramsey over him as long as the Mofo is fit. Every fucking time. We saw it with Rosicky, keeping him on bench despite team performance begging for his quick feet Just so he wouldn’t have to bench Ramsey. It’s gonna happen again with Wilshere who only had a chance at first team when Ramsey got crocked despite the… Read more »
Club performance has been bad with either one? team performance hasn’t changed. Both are different types of players obviously and I would rather have Jack back there and Ramsey further up in the front 3 if in the 343 formation myself. I think Xhaka is the problem. We need DM that is more defensive minded next to Ramsey or Jack.
Xhaka’s issues are with his attention span and carelessness, not with his position. The guy is just entirely too casual about his game, and that needs to stop. Someone (I’m nominating Jens Lehmann) needs to give him a good rollicking in front of the rest of the team.
I understand the perspective, it’s arguable Ramseys’ cup final winners kept him in a job…and Arsene loves ‘loyalty’.
However, I worry when a footballers primary attribute is something physical and it is then hoped that trait will then mask technical deficiencies. Ramseys’ ‘engine’ is the same gift/curse that Theos’ pace was.
Who knows, with contract situations as they stand, I think one of them will eventually force the issue.
A (defensive) midfielder is still high on the priority list. And has been for some time! Someone who complements Ramsey/Jack. I totally agree that Jack and Ramsey are best in the same position (8). Playing either on the wing is a short term fix. I find it sad we’ve never been able to get the best out of both at the same time, as they are two of my favourite players. Arsene has been able to partially dodge the issue because so often one or the other has been injured. And you’re probably right that Arsene would prefer to base… Read more »
Jack perhaps, but Ramsey isn’t really great as a 8 for us. Same reason for Walcott. Both Ramsey and Theo are good players in their respective roles but with teams bunkering deep in their half, they’re crowded out and hardly have bucket loads of technique to navigate thru the defenders. There’s a reason our midfield with Ramsey hasn’t been ticking for us. He slows down play too much and even misses the simplest of passes. Sure he gets a goal and assist every now and then but at the cost of our buildup. He takes up key positions on the… Read more »
I like both Ramsey and Jack. Jack is a liability as much as Ramsey defensively. As for now since AW is the manager he needs to figure out what formation he really wants to play. 343 just move Ramsey in the front 3 where he belongs and bring in another DM and get rid of Xhaka. He is the square peg that is a bigger liability out of the 3. 4231 you either sell him or move him to the wing and move forward. I guess I’m done with him being a DM lol He’s better off with his skills… Read more »
The claims that the offer is a pay cut rather than a similar base wage plus incentives hinge on reports about his current wage. Speculation about player wages is routinely all over the place. The Sun now claim Jack is currently on 110K per week whereas other reports estimate the wage at 80K or 90K per week. Journalists go with the highest estimate because the pay cut narrative creates a better headline.
Yet we offered diaby contract after contract and gave Santi another contract the day before surgery.
Utter madness, and gave theo 140 k a week.leave jack, move away from this crazy club before it drags you down like the rest of us.
Jack Wilshere is good solid squad quality but he’s not creative enough nor defensively sound enough to be a regular starter. The promise part has passed him by, we know what we get on a good day and we know what we get when things don’t go smoothly for him. He may surprise us by adding goals in his game some day but for now he is exactly the type of character we need coming into the side when first team players start dropping their confidence their form or like flies.
So, they offer him a shit contact when he can start talking to other clubs for a free transfer next year. This sounds like they want him to leave
Ridiculous!….while this might make sound business sense to many, and I am not disputing that, given his injury record, but in an environment where we are struggling with fostering loyalty in our players, doing this to one of our few loyal players left will definitely send out the wrong message and I wont blame him one bit if he respectfully turns the offer down. His love for the club is undoubted, his talent is also undoubted, his injury record, though terrible, are not as though it was his fault….just plain bad luck. So given these dynamics, is this really the… Read more »
Any form of actual pay cut when factoring in wage inflation since he signed his last contract becomes effectively a massive one. Jacks agent will know that and I can’t see him signing any form of long term deal on those terms.
This is a very dangerous game Arsenal are playing from such a weak position.
Is it different to the way Chelsea work contracts? You are almost £2bn in debt because you over pay.
It’s not overpaying if you can afford it
It’s not a pay cut unless he’s out of the team, and I don’t see that happening unless he’s injured again. The incentives attached to this new proposal, as I understand it, would give him parity or better with his current contract.
Make sense to me, and probably should to Jack as well. I hope so, anyway.
Anything less than a 30-50% increase on his wages will be an effective pay cut when wage inflation is taken into consideration.
I’m not saying i agree with it but his agent, who’s employed to act in Jack’s best interests surely will not advise signing anything that damages his long term earnings however sensible it sounds.
I can’t see Wilshere agreeing to these terms on a long term contract, perhaps a 1 year extension but not a 4-5 year one.
Thats the part I don’t like.
If he reaches the incentives he will parity or “better” then his current deal
Why would he want to reach incentives and reach parity or slightly better then his current deal?
If you give Coq 100K, if that is true then this offer would be insane. If you think about it. You give Coq 100K when you know he isn’t automatic X1?
WHAT, that’s shocking news a pay cut shame on you arsenal, he should be one of our top earners at the club, if that’s the way they are going to treat you jack then ( I hate to say this ) but I would put in a transfer, and good luck to you , wherever you go
Of the current crop of players we’ve got, Jack is by a huge margin miles apart with the rest in being proud of stepping on the pitch for Arsenal. And we all know a fit enough Wilshere is a lethal weapon in midfield. Give him a lifetime contract while you’re at it. And don’t let money be the reason we lose such a talent.
I understand the logic of offering him a contract based on incentives, considering his injury record, but this does seem rather risky. Hope the penny pinching doesn’t come back to haunt us, and we don’t end up seeing him in sky blue next year.
I like this contract. He has massively benefited financially during injury on his present contract, now repay the favour and you’ll get paid handsomely if you stay fit!
Sounds fair, with his injury record clear for all to see any club interested in him would probably offer similar terms. One things for sure he’s not gonna go hungry anytime soon.
“Will his loyalty to Arsenal and love of the club make the difference?”
Why should it, when we offer him an awful deal like that?
I’m so embarrassed by this club. such a let down every time anything leaks. we are a Disaster
Cant help but feel Wenger and the board are taking Jack’s love for the club for granted. I can see a situation where he runs down his contract and leave on a Bosman. He is good enough to play for any of the current top 4 clubs.
On a related note, how about paying our inept manager in proportion to his performances. That will only seem fair.
Bang on uba. 9 million a year or so to take absolutely nowhere. We have regressed and yet we play hard ball with possibly our most creative player. Dangerous from arsenal
Obviously we don’t know the specifics of the deal offered, but I for one will be ashamed of the club if it’s a shit deal. Crying out for leaders and people who love the club/play for the shirt to guide us through this dog-shit time we’re in and he is the main man for that job. Please stay jack!
Interesting situation, which obviously pleases all the Jack haters.
Yet Ozil gets a free ride from any criticism despite refusing several offers whilst sedately heading towards a Bosman this summer.
I can see Liverpool being interested if Jack doesn’t sign.
Not a Jack hater at all, just the situations are quite different. One is a world class star who is usually fit, the other a talented and promising player who is usually not fit.
And Ozil never gets a free ride on these boards.
So basically they are leveraging his love for the club. If he went elsewhere he would triple his wages. Have the club considered how much in wages it would be to bring someone in of equivalent quality? I can see why Wenger wanted him to get more games under his belt and build him up slowly so he doesnt break down again, bringing him up to a boil just as contract time comes along. So that Jack has the best position to negotiate with the club. Wenger knows the board well now and is doing what he can to safeguard… Read more »
A pay cut? In this day and age? This lot cease to amaze me. I know his record. Well.
That’s not a bad idea from the club but very risky.
So many complaints on here but I’d love this to be the start of something. We can’t compete with the wages that the Manchester clubs or Chelsea offer, but that means we can separate the players who want to play for the Arsenal out from those who want to earn a lot of money.
No one’s bigger than the club, we all believe that, that’s why so many of us are happy to fuck Sanchez off, because he seemingly thinks otherwise.
I bet the board did a collective snigger when they wrote up Jack’s new contract.
~ £1 million bonus if you don’t get injured again ~
“HAHA YEAH RIGHT!” *high fives*
I would be surprised if the incentives weren’t pretty high if he stays fit. I’m sure if he can prove his longterm fitness he will be offered a new deal anyway.
This deal makes good sense when you consider Jack’s awful injury record. However, I suspect that some club may well be prepared to offer him a better deal; one which does not take injuries into account. And if I was Jack I’d be inclined to have the security of a guaranteed payday. How come nobody’s talking about Ozil? The entire situation there is rather strange. Unlike Sanchez, nobody seems to be interested in our Germany midfielder, and our lazy friend still appears to be reluctant to sign a new contract. So is he going to just walk away this summer… Read more »
Certainly doesn’t look good for Arsenal to offer him a lower salary, but I do think it is a fair offer with incentives to earn more based on playing matches given his injury history and how much we paid him when he was not able to play for months at a time. Would love to see him stay, but right now you can’t even guarantee him he would be a starting midfielder with the players we have and surely we will bring in some more midfielders at some point.
Can’t guarantee Wilshere a starting place because or Xhaka ?
this is a good way to do business and will attract top players for sure
I’m not surprised JW is where he is today post injuries, really hope his new body management, means he stays fit, he will make such an impact if he stays fit, that the contract he can renegotiate when he is say 28 and probably captain would be huge, I think he is that good. I also think it’s good prudent management from the club that had RVP, Diaby (unfulfilled genius), Walcott, Rosicky, JW (first incarnation) and latterly Carzola on its books. It’s best for all parties, prove yourself and we’ll cough up, though I feel the new JW is unlikely… Read more »
Fully agree with everything except the outdated wengerball part. The current play isn’t the true blue good old wengerball. Watching since ‘98, there’s a huge notable difference. Sure we still try to play quick triangles but back then it was a blazing speed counter attack (built from a rock solid base with 2 strong and dominating DMs). Right now, we still play the passing game but it’s slow and laborious and too much side to side pointless faffing. Our midfield is prolly the main cause of that (btw I do not consider Ozil to be in midfield, he’s part of… Read more »
I’ve been one to give him a break up till the stadium debt years. Now over the past 5 seasons its obvious that he shouldn’t be in charge of transfers other then telling a DoF what he needs and letting someone like Sven do his magic. It should have been most obvious after only getting Cech and not spending all if not most of the transfer money to get more talent. If he is in charge of contracts then that should have been taken away from him years ago too. All this slow negotiations is killing the club. Why can’t… Read more »
And here is a late result.
Bosman 3 Arsenal 0
Midfield is very bare at the moment as far as experience + capability is concern. We are beholden to start Granit. For all his flaws, he also brings something to the team with his long range passing but this should never have been allowed to be the case. At very least as an alternative, we should also have (kept) a ro robust defensive type who can tackle and hold the ball In the link role we have Jack who has been excellent being combative, protecting and using the ball from deep. he is one of the few more experienced heads… Read more »
Penny pinching from Arsenal. Sad times.
The club has invested heavily in Jack without much return. He is a special player but we have payed him a lot of money to watch games from the stands. The contract is good business and makes total sense given his history of injuries. If Jack cares about the club he will want to repay some of that investment. Sign the contract Jack!
Will be just typical we manage to fuck this up to. Although it makes some sense , I can see this going tits up.
Jack, just wait. ManU will offer you more money and you can play with Alexis and Özil together.
Money talks BS walks.
Wilshere is the type of player that will have long injury right after he sign a new deal, ao i agree with this term, just give him one year contract extension to make him fit and free-injury.