Robin Van Persie will have one year left on his contract in the summer.
The summer is not now – now is the present and now is all that counts. We in the business of winning football matches and right now, no-one should be discussing contracts. I wouldn’t put time into worrying about whether or not someone wants to talk about signing a new contract when the club haven’t even offered him one yet and we’re in the middle of a period where nothing is more important than the games we play.
The reason some supporters are maybe a little worried at the moment is because of the Nasri affair. But let me tell you one thing – Robin Van Persie & Samir Nasri are two different players and two different people all together. Nasri has had a trademark journey of not signing contracts and moving clubs – that how he left Marseille and ended up at Arsenal anyway. Whereas Robin Van Persie has joined the club and stayed for 7 years – through the hard times of when we haven’t won anything. He’s 28 and if he stays until the end of his contract, then he will play with us from age 21 to age 30.
But do I believe Robin Van Persie will sign a new contract? Yes, I do, but I believe it will be in summer, not now.
When asked about his contract Van Persie said:
“I still have almost two years until 2013. So, for the moment, that’s fine, but I don’t know. We will have to look. I’m happy with my contract, I’m good. That’s how it is, I can’t say much more. I can’t look into the future.”
And following on from that, he was asked whether he would prefer to sign now or later and he replied.
“Maybe leave it because the main thing for me is the team and that we play well. I do believe you have to look for a right moment to sit down and speak about your own stuff. It’s not only about me, it’s about the team. I don’t want to give the wrong message to speak about my own stuff while the others are a bit more important, especially now. I can’t see we are talking now because we are so busy. We have games every three or four days. I don’t think it’s clever to do that during the season. We have to see, I don’t know.”
Van Persie is our current captain and I believe he has a different mental make up than Samir Nasri – I think he has a closer relationship with the gaffer too. I really don’t think he will be sold next summer. He has had opportunities to leave when he wasn’t playing and more recently, I think his words throughout the summer and way in which he has carries himself. You can see him out there on the pitch – it’s clear he loves the club.
When he was handed the number 10, he said:
“I have never stopped believing in Arsenal. I love this club, this is my seventh year now. Arsenal gave me a chance to develop into a good player and I want to repay the Club and the fans and everyone with trophies. I love the way of thinking at Arsenal, the way of playing really stands out. I know two teams who play similar football; they are us and Barcelona. Some teams are trying but not really coming close. I speak to colleagues in the national team from different big teams which have a different way of thinking. But I prefer our way of thinking, very much. That’s why I believe and I don’t stop believing when things go against us.”
I’m convinced he will re-sign when the time is right. You can remind me that I’ve said this too…
And it’s fingers crossed time for Jack Wilshere – he had surgery on his right ankle and is now in a period of recovery. The BBC claims he will be out for 5 further months, but I think he will be back a little sooner. The statement from Arsenal read:
“Under the care of two world-renowned surgeons, Jack has had the stress fracture of his right ankle repaired. The initial indications are that the surgery has been successful and Jack will now undergo a prolonged period of rehabilitation.”
Good luck Jack…
