Arsenal accelerate new deal talks with prized asset to put brakes on monumental Real Madrid transfer

Arsenal are understood to be stepping up their quest to tie William Saliba to a new deal with Real Madrid plans to sign the stylish France defender brought forward to the January window and amid claims they have already been in touch with his entourage.

The 23-year-old centre-half is now just two matches shy of reaching 100 appearances for Arsenal, proving himself one of the best investments ever made by now departed sporting director Edu. Brought in the summer of 2019 when just 18 from St Etienne, the £27m fee paid for Saliba has already proved exceptional business by the Gunners, and with the defender now ranked as one of the best in the world game.

Speculation linking Saliba with a move to Real Madrid are nothing new and the 25-times capped France international has long been touted as a top target for the Spanish giants amid claims president Florentino Perez plans to sign him as part of a new-look defensive unit in summer 2025.

Per Le10 Sport, Perez has now brought those plans forward from the summer to the winter window, owing in the main to the recent season-ending knee injury sustained by unfortunate Brazilian defender Eder Militao.

His absence already leaves Real Madrid badly stretched in the heart of their defence and the strong belief is that Perez will look to sign a replacement at the first available opportunity.

The article claims representatives from Los Blancos have already reached out to Saliba’s entourage to discuss the prospects of a move.

And while the report claims ‘it is difficult not to listen or even consider joining’ Real Madrid, the Gunners plan to counteract that plan by offering the player a huge new contract of their own.

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Arsenal hope Saliba commits to a new deal with wages dwarfed by top earners

Saliba’s current arrangement at Arsenal is not due to expire until summer 2027, but the progress he has made in north London, combined with speculation of interest from both Real Madrid and PSG, had already seen the Gunners approach the player over signing an extension to those terms.

Indeed, we exclusively broke the news back in October that Arsenal had already been in touch with his camp to discuss that possibility.

His current arrangement is understood to be worth £10m (€12.1m, $12.8m) a season – around £190,000 a week – making him one of the best-paid players at Emirates Stadium.

However, his pay is dwarfed by the club’s two highest earners Gabriel Jesus (£265,000 a week) and Kai Havertz (£280,000) a week, leaving the Gunners with room to extend Saliba’s salary further.

And amid the lurking menace that is Real Madrid, the Gunners hope to present their new terms to the player sooner rather than later in a bid to ward off Perez and tie down their star defender for several more seasons yet.

Real’s interest in signing Saliba has also been confirmed to TEAMtalk sources, while we have also been told that speculation linking free-agent former Los Blancos defender Sergio Ramos with a return to the Bernabeu is currently wide of the mark.

Whether that situation changes if they fail to land Saliba, or another of their options in Bayer Leverkusen’s Jonathan Tah, remains to be seen.

Latest Arsenal transfer news: Man Utd want Gunners keeper / Italy striker eyed

Meanwhile, the Gunners face a battle to persuade Karl Hein to commit to a new deal at Emirates Stadium amid claims the Arsenal goalkeeper is one of three stoppers identified by new Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim.

The Estonian has shone while on loan with Real Valladolid with his performances seemingly convincing the new United boss to move for him in the January window and with Erik ten Hag’s signing, Andre Onana, apparently facing the chop.

Elsewhere, the Gunners are reported to have identified Atalanta striker Mateo Retegui as a solid Plan B to Viktor Gyokeres if the Sweden striker slips through their net.

The Italy star has been in top form this season and his apparent asking price reportedly makes Retegui of huge appeal to the Arsenal hierarchy.

And finally, doubts are already starting to emerge over Raheem Sterling’s long-term future at Arsenal amid claims there are concerns about the Chelsea loanee’s level of performances in training at their London Colney training complex.

How Real Madrid could line up next season with Saliba as part of new-look defence

Having spent money bolstering their attack last summer thanks to the arrivals of Kylian Mbappe and Endrick, Perez is turning the 2025 windows into a mission to strengthen his rearguard.

And while Saliba is not the only new defender Real Madrid are chasing, he also has both Alphonso Davies and Trent Alexander-Arnold in his sights.

That new-look defence would give Los Blancos one of the most formidable starting XIs in world football, and with both Davies and Alexander-Arnold potentially both moving on free transfers, they could afford to finance a giant move for Saliba, who is already rated in the €150m (£124.4m, $159.4m) bracket by Arsenal.