Mertesacker and Rosicky sign new Arsenal contracts

Per Mertesacker and Tomas Rosicky have signed new Arsenal contracts, the club has announced.

Mertesacker has been rewarded for forging a hugely successful partnership with Laurent Koscielny, while Rosicky's experience has made him useful to the Gunners in big matches.

"We are delighted that Mertesacker and Rosicky have committed their futures to the club," Arsene Wenger told the club's official website.

"They are players of exceptional quality and experience, and have consistently proven themselves at the highest level.

"There is a great feeling of togetherness and belief in the group and this news will only help to strengthen this further."

On the announcement of his new deal, Mertesacker said: "It was easy for me to commit myself to the club. I have been here for two and a half great years and feel I have great support from everyone at the club and the fans. I’m really looking forward to having more years coming up with this fantastic club.

"We have a great team here and we all want to do our best to win trophies."

Rosicky added: "Ever since I arrived at Arsenal, I have always felt that I'm at the right place where I want to be. I still feel this way now and I'm proud that after such a long time I'm still here and will continue.

"One big factor is that I want to win the league with Arsenal. It's my big goal and I will do everything that I can to achieve it.

"Arsenal is a great club, we have a great spirit here and we are all working together to do the best we can."

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Mertesacker: We wanted Suarez to join Arsenal

Per Mertesacker has revealed his Arsenal team-mates were keen on Luis Suarez joining the club last summer.

The Gunners had two bids for the Uruguay international turned down, but Wenger insists he will not reignite his interest in Suarez at the end of the season, although Mertesacker believes the Liverpool forward would have settled quickly in north London.

"Suarez is like a cheeky boy, he looks like a cheeky boy who can really switch on and off how he wants to be, so that is really something," Mertesacker told The Guardian.

"When he is on the pitch, what is going on around him doesn't bother him.

"He is just a pure striker and that is what comes out after the transfer requests and him saying: 'It's better for me to leave because I want to play Champions League.'

“When we heard that Arsenal might be interested in him, obviously we were up for it and we thought, 'Yeah, he would fit in.' But after, we got [Mesut] Ozil."

Mertesacker claims the arrival of compatriot Ozil from Real Madrid boosted everyone connected with Arsenal and believes the midfielder was “the right addition” last summer.

"To reach another level, you sometimes need the right addition to lift everybody, not just the players but the whole club and the whole public in between," said the Germany international.

"We didn't need five or six players late in the window, which is what Arsenal got when I arrived.

“It is not easy to get everyone settled. We were a good squad and we didn't lose any players over the summer, which was the main part. But we needed that right addition and we can say that Ozil was it."

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Mertesacker : Arsenal 'relaxed' about tough run

Per Mertesacker says that Premier League leaders Arsenal are "relaxed" ahead of a difficult run of fixtures.

Arsene Wenger's side have been in superb form this season and top the table with 35 points from 15 matches but will face a stern test of their title credentials in December, with Saturday's visit to Manchester City followed by a home fixture against Chelsea.

Gunners will then take to the road for encounters against West Ham and Newcastle before the end of the year but they have lost just twice in the league this term and the centre-back feels that they are in good stead after overcoming their "toughest game" of the campaign in a 1-1 draw with Everton on Sunday.

"I think that was the toughest game we have been through the whole season," the Germany international told Arsenal's official website. "They pressured us high up, all the way through from the start until the end.

"We couldn't play that much and, in the second half, everything was possible on both sides, with chances here and there, so I think it was a fair result.

"We have tough games coming up over the next week and over the Christmas period. We just want to go one game at a time.

"We are really relaxed, we don't have to respond to anyone. We just have to do our job every single second of the game. That is our target, nothing else."

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Mertesacker want to extend Arsenal contract

Mertesacker is having a great time at Emirate Stadium and the defender is keen to extend his contract at Arsenal.

The 29-year-old joined Arsenal in August 2011 and initially struggled to adapt to the pace of the Premier League - but he is now showing his best form having struck up a solid partnership with Laurent Koscielny.

I am very happy here," he is quoted as saying by the Evening Standard. "The first year was tough for me, a very tough challenge, but the club and the manager always trusted me in a special way.

"I got a big injury in my first year, so I took my time to settle down completely and there were a lot of reasons.

"I think it is a little reward that we are talking [about a new contract], because I still have one-and-a-half years left. There is no rush but it seems that some people are delighted with my performances at the moment. I am pleased with the situation.

"It took me a while to get to that level. But the manager always trusted me and said I was intelligent enough to cope with problems."

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Mertesacker : Arsenal defence must improve

Per Mertesacker insists Arsenal need to defend better if they are to maintain the fine form that has taken them top of the Premier League table.

The Gunners have scored 18 goals in their opening eight league fixtures but nine conceded is joint-worst defensive record in the top six, and their German defender insists they need to tighten up at the back.

We know we are on a good run, but we know it needs more than just playing with full freedom and vision - we need to defend first and then we can switch the rest on," he told the Evening Standard.

"You have seen what can happen after that.”

Last weekend’s win over Norwich saw Jack Wilshere score one of the best goals of the season following some intricate interplay on the edge of the box, and Mertesacker admits he is excited by the attacking options at Arsene Wenger’s disposal.

"We have players who can play so quickly together," he explained. "Tomas Rosicky came in and fitted into everything as well as Mesut [Ozil] or Jack [Wilshere].

"When those three combined together, you could feel some magic in the air, a real chemistry.

"Mesut does not need to adapt to our style because he is a natural talent. You could see that against Norwich, when we played such good football."

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