Arsenal are “ready to trigger” a clause that will extend Granit Xhaka’s contract for an additional year, according to The Sun.

The Swiss international’s current £120,000 a week deal expires at the end of next season, but the Gunners are now looking to keep the midfielder at the Emirates until at least 2025.

It’s fair to say that Xhaka has had his ups and downs during his six and a half years at the London club, and the player admitted that, at one point, he had to be persuaded by manager Mikel Arteta to stay.

Over the course of the last twelve months, though, his fortunes have changed dramatically. Arteta’s decision to play the 30-year-old slightly further forward has paid dividends.

Xhaka has been a key component in Arsenal’s title challenge and, while he no longer wears the captain’s armband, he is very much still a leader in the dressing room. For those reasons, it’s not surprising that the Gunners want to keep him around for longer.