Mohamed Elneny has confirmed he wants to sign a new contract at Arsenal, with the Egypt international now waiting for the Gunners to make a final decision on his future.
Arsenal forked out £5 million to sign Elneny from Swiss outfit Basel in January 2016, and he has since made 142 appearances for the club while becoming an FA Cup winner.
The 29-year-old fell down the squad pecking order after Mikel Arteta's arrival in December 2019, but has recently regained favour and is now playing a key role in the Gunners' push for a top-four Premier League finish.
What has Elneny said about his future?
Elneny is set to become a free agent in the summer, but the midfielder is still hopeful that Arsenal will offer him fresh terms because he considers the club to be his "family".
“If Arsenal say: ‘We want you’, I don’t think about leaving,” the Egyptian said after the Gunners' 3-1 win over Manchester United on Saturday. “It’s my family for six years. I love this club.
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“I always love a challenge and give 100 per cent all the time. I don’t decide who plays, but I keep going in training to show how good I am and to make him (Arteta) play me. If I don’t play I keep going until I get my chance. The contract and stuff, I’m just waiting for the club to decide what they want.”
Elneny thanks Arteta for his trust
Elneny produced a stellar display in the middle of the park against United, three days after a similarly influential performance in the 4-2 London derby victory over Chelsea.
He had previously been restricted to just seven top-flight appearances in 2021-22, but is grateful to Arteta for trusting him against two of the biggest sides in the division and hopes to retain his place in their final five matches.
“I’m really happy to be one of the starting XI for these two games," Elneny said. "I gave everything in training to be one of the starting XI every game and I got my chance and I think I did well. Most importantly, we won the two games.
“It’s been a long wait for me but you have to believe. I have to train hard every day, focus all the time to wait for a chance and when it comes you have to give everything just to keep it.
“He (Arteta) just trusts me and he put me in the big games, and I have to thank him for that. I will keep going and not think about anything else, just focus on my performances to help the team reach our goal."