Arsenal ‘close in on pay cut agreement of with players following intervention from Mikel Arteta’

Arsenal ‘close in on pay cut agreement with players’ after breakthrough comes following ‘crucial intervention from boss Mikel Arteta’

  • The breakthrough came after an intervention from Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta 
  • The cuts will vary depending on if they qualify for next year’s Champions League 
  • The reductions will also be in effect from this month onwards until March 2021 

Arsenal are close to becoming the first Premier League club to reach an agreement with their players about a wage cut amounting to 12.5 per cent per month, according to The Athletic.

The breakthrough is believed to have come following a crucial intervention from boss Mikel Arteta, who spoke to his players on Wednesday night.

The cuts – which the majority of the squad have agreed to – will vary depending on whether Arsenal qualify for next year’s Champions League and will reportedly be deducted monthly from now on until March 2021.

Arsenal have made a breakthrough in negotiations to get the players to take wage cuts

But it is also understood the proposal will see the club extend the reimbursement agreement so that players would get their money back if they qualify for the Champions League inside two seasons.

The development represents a sudden turnaround from the squad’s initial rejection of the club’s original proposal of a 12.5 per cent pay cut for an entire year.

As of the weekend, Gunners players were against accepting pay cuts but were open to considering wage deferrals — though there was growing hope behind the scenes that squad members were coming round to the idea of the former. 

The report however states that it is unclear how the players who rejected the latest proposal, which is yet to be formally signed off by all involved, will be affected.

The pressure on players to accept reductions increased on Wednesday after the club revealed the executive team — including managing director Vinai Venkatesham and head of football Raul Sanllehi — had volunteered to take a pay cut of more than a third.

The breakthrough is believed to have come following an intervention from boss Mikel Arteta

The breakthrough is believed to have come following an intervention from boss Mikel Arteta

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