No Real deal as Wenger vows to stick with Gunners

ARSENE WENGER has publicly committed himself to Arsenal for at least the next two seasons following reports that he held a recent meeting with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez in Paris.

According to French sports paper L’Equipe, Wenger met Perez, along with Real’s director of sport, Jorge Valdano, and agent Marc Roger, in the departures lounge at Orly airport last Friday before the party then adjourned to a hotel.

There was no confirmation as to what the alleged meeting was about, although Real have been linked with Wenger in the wake of Vicente del Bosque’s failure to reach the Champions League final.

The Arsenal boss told L’Equipe he “met lots of people last Friday” before insisting: “I am still contracted for two years at Arsenal and I will go to the end of this engagement. We will see what happens after that but I could even stay at Arsenal.”

Del Bosque’s current deal expires this summer and after the outgoing holders were eliminated in the Champions League semi-finals by Juventus, they put any new contract talks on hold.

Arsenal insisted they were “not perturbed” by the renewed reports linking Wenger, who was apparently in Paris last Friday after visiting Switzerland with the Spanish club.

An Arsenal statement added: “Arsene himself has reiterated his commitment to the club on a number of occasions and we see no reason to pass further comment on the subject.”

Wenger has repeatedly made it clear that he honours his contracts and does not walk out on clubs, although he has admitted that progress on the club’s delayed new stadium project could be a significant factor in whether he extends his current deal.