Arsenal: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain The Forgotten Contract Mess

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has a little over a year remaining on his Arsenal deal. Amid transfer speculation away, his if the forgotten transfer mess.

Paul Merson was an Arsenal legend throughout the 1990s. Since his retirement, he has made his name as a bumbling Sky Sports pundit, famed for his mispronunciation of continental names and slating Hull City’s rather astute hiring of Marco Silva for lacking knowledge or experience of the Premier League.

In his work as a pundit, Merson, when discussing the futures amid the contract disputes of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, stated that, while he was at the North London club, his contract never had less than two years remaining. That is a damning indictment on the current contract mess that the Gunners find themselves in.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

Much of the focus has centred on Sanchez and Ozil, and rightly so given their importance to the team. However, there are more players on the books that are in precarious contract situations than just the two starlights of the squad. Jack Wilshere, who is currently enjoying a season-long loan at Bournemouth has, a little over a year remaining. Both Aaron Ramsey and Kieran Gibbs will enter the final years of their respective deals next season. And Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is another who is staring down the closing stages of his current contract.

The winger-turned-central-midfielder has been in excellent form in recent weeks, enjoying the forced positional switch, potentially reshaping his future as a deep-lying distributor, rather than a pacy, powerful, hustling, bustling wide man. However, he too has a little over a year remaining on his contract and there have been musings that, amid a frustration with a lack of playing time, Chamberlain may look to force an exit.

Add to this the confusion and the frenzy that transfer speculation adds to this, and suddenly, his Arsenal future is far from certain. The latest reports suggest that both Manchester City and Everton are interested in the possibility of bringing the 23-year-old in. These revelations come days after rumours claiming that Manchester United were also musing the possibility of signing him.

There is much to be concerned regarding Chamberlain his future. But Arsenal only have themselves to blame. Unlike Merson in the 90s, Chamberlain’s contract has been allowed to dwindle down to a stage where he now has the power during negotiations.

Next: 5 Game-Changing Summer Transfers

His resurgence as a central midfielder has re-established Chamberlain as a key member of the first team squad. With his prime still before him, losing him to a domestic rival would be a major blow. His contract mess has slipped under the radar and now Arsenal may have to pay the price for their negligence.

Home/Arsenal Transfer Rumours