Arsene Wenger puts new Arsenal contract talks on hold

Arsene Wenger has told Arsenal that he will not hold contract talks with the club before next summer.

The manager’s current deal runs until June 2014 and Wenger has been informally approached by the board to arrange a time to open discussions over a new deal.

But Wenger has no intention of discussing an extension during the season and that he will assess his future at the end of the current campaign. “There will be no talks before then,” one source said.

It is expected that the most successful manager in Arsenal's history will judge his position at the end of the season, with the tipping point likely to be whether he records a 17th consecutive top-four finish.

This fits in with Wenger’s own public comments in the wake of Saturday’s limp 2-0 defeat against Swansea, which prompted the Frenchman to turn his anger on his own players.

Wenger stuck to his oft-stated line of honouring his contracts, while at the same time reiterating his confidence about his ability to drive the club forward.

“If you ask me always about my future, I can only give you one answer,” he said. “I always respected my contracts, and that is it.”

The Arsenal board, led by majority owner Stan Kroenke and chief executive Ivan Gazidis, retain complete faith in Wenger and would like to extend a reign that is now in its 17th year.

Despite Arsenal going seven seasons without winning a trophy, Wenger is appreciated by the board for maintaining the club's elite status either side of the move from Highbury while having a transfer budget that was dwarfed by the club's rivals.

The north Londoners' high command are also convinced that new commercial deals, such as the recently-announced £150million Emirates contract that comes into effect from 2014, and Uefa's Financial Fair Play rules, leave Arsenal even better positioned in the medium and long term than they are now.