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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
George Flood

Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi not thinking about Gunners future during coronavirus crisis

Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi insists he is not thinking about his future at the club amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The German centre-back looked set to depart north London in January after being deemed surplus to requirements by former boss Unai Emery, but has made 10 first-team appearances since Mikel Arteta took the managerial reins over the festive period.

Mustafi has less than 18 months left to run on his current Arsenal contract amid previous rumours that he would still likely move on in the summer, but such a topic is understandably not at the forefront of the player's mind in the current climate.

All elite football in England is now suspended until at least April 30 due to the Covid-19 crisis that has led to the deaths of 578 people in the United Kingdom as of Thursday.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was the first high-profile Premier League figure to contract the virus, with the club's players and staff subsequently placed into 14-day quarantine as a precaution.

Arteta has now recovered, though the Gunners did not return to training at London Colney as initially planned on Tuesday, deciding that to do so in light of the current situation would have been "‘inappropriate & irresponsible".

Speaking to Sky in Germany, Mustafi said: “We are in a situation where everyone is worried about the current situation and not so much about their personal future.

Shkodran Mustafi's Arsenal contract is due to expire in the summer of 2021 (Getty Images)

“It is difficult to think about my personal future.

“None of us know what will happen next and when we can play again. So, once we have overcome this difficult time and are back on the pitch, I can think about questions like that.

"At the moment I don’t think about it.

“Also the club has more important stuff to deal with right now than my future.”

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