Arsene Wenger wants new Danny Welbeck deal

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has admitted that he would like to tie down striker Danny Welbeck to a new long-term contract.

The 27-year-old is into the final 18 months of the five-year deal he signed when he moved to the Emirates from Manchester United in September 2014.

The England international's time with the Gunners has been blighted by a series of knee injuries, however, and he has been restricted to just 34 Premier League appearances over the last three seasons.

"I like him because he can play left, right or up front, and for his quality," Wenger told reporters this week. "He is a useful player and useful is a positive. He might not be a goalscorer like Harry Kane but for England he can perfectly play with Kane because he can play on the flanks. I want to keep him because he has gone through a torrid time and come out well.

"One of the advantages of being young is that you feel indestructible. It gives you an arrogance but when you lose that belief in your body, your arrogance is hit and you are lost. You can get it back but it takes time.

"There was a time when I remember him playing for England in Switzerland and he looked marvellous. I see signs of him now in training where he is like that period. He's a player we'd all like to come back. If he can stay on the pitch and not be injured, I want him to stay here."

Welbeck is thought to earn around £70,000 a week under his current deal with the Gunners.