Bacary Sagna willing to extend his stay, what is the board waiting for?!

In an interview with The Mirror, Bacary Sagna blew away any rumors about his possible departure to PSG, Monaco or even Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The Frenchman declared himself impatient to start the new season with the Arsenal and said he’s ready to extend his stay over the end of the current deal, which is set on June, 30th 2014.

Should Arsène Wenger and the board share the same will, the saga about Bacary Sagna’s stay could be solved with a new agreement but parts look today quite far to each other both in terms of wages and – most important – duration of a new deal: as usual, Arsène Wenger won’t be keen on offering a more than two year extension, seen that the right-back is entering the descending phase of his career and suffered several serious injuries in recent time; on the other end, the former Auxerre man will want to make the best of what could be the last contract of his career, which doesn’t make negotiations easy at all.

For what I understand, there’s no offer on the table and therefore we’d better concentrate on the importance of having a fully fit and focused Bacary Sagna within the team, especially if you still consider the Frenchman one of the best defenders in the Premier League, as I definitely do.

Should the current situation be confirmed beyond the end of the transfers window, the first one to benefit from the situation will be Carl Jenkinson, despite the nonsense this sentence could generate.

Many of you would be more than happy to see Carl Jenkinson handed a regular spot, not me: the guy is brave, has an amazing fighting spirit, can cross the ball better than Sagna and has shown a great potential but at the moment he cannot offer the same performances of a fully fit and focused Bacary Sagna.

The experience, physical qualities and defensive abilities of the Frenchman are still way superior to what Carl Jenkinson can offer today, reason why I am pleased to welcome (back) to the starting eleven a player like Bacary Sagna.

Having Bacary Sagna in the team could prove to be an invaluable asset for Carl Jenkinson, as the young defender could keep progressing as he brilliantly did over the last two seasons and could be ready when the baton will be passed.

The former Charlton full-back has been rewarded with a new long –term contract, has been chosen for the spectacular launch of the new away kit and is part of the “British Core”, therefore it’s quite clear how important he is for the future of the Club.

He might not be a regular in the current starting XI but Carl Jenkinson is already a very important member of the team in Arsène Wenger’s eyes, who worked hard on him in recent months after bringing him in for less than £1m.

If Bacary Sagna ends elsewhere this summer, Carl Jenkinson will be the first to suffer as the possible scenarios are two: the full-back is handed a regular spot in the team together with the huge risk of losing the credit he currently benefits among fans, something that could happen after a handful of bad performances;  second option, Arsène Wenger brings in another established right-back, possibly younger than Bacary Sagna, and Carl Jenkinson ends up spending more years in the shadow of his concurrent.

I don’t see the manager replacing Bacary Sagna with an ad interim defender, waiting for Carl Jenkinson to be ready. It would be very tricky to take such a gamble after the months spent building a reliable back line and I don’t see the manager taking that gamble.

I am quite sure that Le Prof will bring in an experienced, proved full-back who could put Carl Jenkinson on the bench for a few seasons.

Cheer with me at the confirmation that Bacary Sagna will be an Arsenal player next year too (and beyond, possibly), remember how exceptional he has been since his first season and forget the doubts raised during the last season – at times absolutely below standards, I reckon.

The same leg broken twice in less than 12 months, an entire pre-season missed, a shaky team around and the tons of rumors involving his name have finally destabilized even the best right-back in the league for the last 5 years.

I always want the best for the Arsenal.

Therefore, I want Bacary Sagna.

COMMON ARSENAL!