Mikel Arteta could be without three defenders for the final fixtures of Arsenal's season unless the club hierarchy takes swift action on their contracts.
David Luiz's contract expires on June 30, the same day that loan agreements for Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares come to an end.
Premier League rules allow players to sign temporary contracts through to the end of the season but these must be agreed by June 23, giving Arsenal less than two weeks in which to make up their minds on the future of three defenders, two of whom (Luiz and Mari) were the starting centre-back pairing for their final game before lockdown.
Cedric, meanwhile, has not featured since joining Arsenal on loan from Southampton in January. He arrived with a knee injury that he was just recovering from when the coronavirus pandemic forced the three month postponement of Premier League fixtures.
The 28-year-old also missed the Gunners' friendlies against Charlton Athletic and Brentford due to a facial injury that has forced him to train with a mask.
Cedric's contract with the Saints is due to expire on June 30, the same day as his loan agreement. So far no talks have taken place over extending his Arsenal stay and the veteran right-back, signed as cover for Hector Bellerin, could depart without ever having played a game.
The Portuguese international could agree a new deal with the Gunners that would begin on July 1 but the Premier League does not want free agents who do not agree extensions with their current club to play for a new team in the final weeks of the season.
Arsenal could make the case to the league that Cedric's situation is sufficiently different to the likes of Ryan Fraser, who is not expected to sign a short-term deal with Bournemouth and will enter the free agent market in July, that his full registration ought to be able to pass to them without any issues. Even in these unprecedented times this is a unique bind faced by few other clubs.
Cedric is not the only loanee facing an uncertain future ahead of Arsenal's return to action against Manchester City on June 17. Pablo Mari's loan deal with the Gunners also expires at the end of this month.
Arsenal are keen to sign Mari on a permanent deal and the Spaniard has impressed on and off the pitch since his arrival from Flamengo in late January. However the £8million purchase option that was once considered a bargain investment must now be more carefully considered.
Mari is still expected to extend his stay but football.london understands that formal talks between Arsenal and Flamengo over either a loan extension or the activation of the purchase option remain at a formative stage.
Mari and Luiz started Arsenal's 1-0 win over West Ham that was their final game before lockdown and Arteta would like to retain both. The former provides a left-footed option in the heart of defence whilst the latter has won much praise for his leadership role since Arteta took over.
Luiz's £125,000-a-week contract also expires on June 30 and Arsenal have yet to activate the option to extend it by a further 12 months. The player's representative Kia Joorabchian has held talks with head of football Raul Sanllehi and technical director Edu over the 33-year-old's future, including the possibility of his signing for a lower salary.
Arsenal's actions over both Luiz and Mari could be informed by what success they believe they will have with moving on other defenders this summer. football.london has been told that Sokratis Papastathopoulos expects to be sold this summer whilst Shkodran Mustafi is also available if a buyer can be found.
