Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has opened up on the "emotional" moment when he was offered the chance to sign a new contract at the Emirates.
On Friday morning, the club announced that Arteta had extended his contract until the end of the 2024-25 season alongside women's manager Jonas Eidevall, whose new deal now runs for two more years.
Since arriving in the dugout in December 2019, Arteta has already scooped the FA Cup and Community Shield despite disappointing back-to-back eighth-placed finishes in the Premier League.
However, Arsenal are now in the driving seat for a return to Champions League football, sitting two points clear of Tottenham Hotspur in the top four ahead of the weekend's fixtures.
The Gunners have reignited their Champions League charge with consecutive victories over Chelsea, Manchester United and West Ham United after three previous losses to Crystal Palace, Brighton & Hove Albion and Southampton.
Arteta has now revealed that the new contract was put on the table in the wake of those defeats, and the 40-year-old was touched by the timing of the club's offer.
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"The club offered me the contract when we lost three matches... that doesn't happen in football. I got emotional when I saw it. That tells me these guys are serious," Arteta told reporters at Friday's press conference.
"The club was so decisive and committed to do it now. They wanted to bring clarity for the project and not have to worry about that in the summer."
The Gunners boss also issued a team news update ahead of Sunday's meeting with Leeds United, where Arsenal could enter the day in fifth if Tottenham pull off a shock victory over Liverpool at Anfield.
While Kieran Tierney and Thomas Partey remain sidelined, Ben White should be available for the contest after missing the 2-1 win at West Ham last weekend due to a tight hamstring.
"Ben White is in contention, he will train tomorrow to make sure he is available. Everyone else is okay," Arteta added.
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However, White could very well be spared for the impending North London derby with Tottenham Hotspur on May 12, especially after Rob Holding scored his first Premier League goal at the London Stadium last week.
Gabriel Magalhaes also headed home to hand Arsenal all three points against West Ham, and the Brazilian has been linked with a switch to Juventus after another impressive campaign in North London.
When questioned on the speculation surrounding Gabriel's future, Arteta responded: "What we want to do is improve the team and the squad. There's not a player that can't improve. We want to retain our best players and add quality and depth."
Gabriel's game-winning header against West Ham was his fourth Premier League goal for the Gunners this season, with the 24-year-old staking his claims for a spot in the Brazil squad at the 2022 World Cup.
Following Sunday's encounter with Leeds, Arsenal will do battle with top-four rivals Tottenham on Thursday before rounding off their campaign against Newcastle United and Everton.
Ben Knapton
