Mikel Arteta has confirmed Arsenal have taken up the option to extend the loan deals of Pablo Mari, Cedric Soares and Dani Ceballos.
Meanwhile, David Luiz is set to extend his stay at the Emirates Stadium by a further 12 months.
The Gunners head coach revealed the contract updates during his pre-Southampton press conference on Tuesday evening where he also opened up on two key transfer decisions.
After confirming the plan is to sign Mari on a permanent basis, Arteta revealed when fans can expect an announcement.
"Well, we’ve been trying to get the deal done because we were happy with what Pablo can bring to us and the club were trying to finalise the deal," he told reporters.
"I think the club will announce that as quick as possible when everything is sorted.
"There were some legal issues that needed to get done, but our intention is to keep him."
Another loan star set to join permanently is Cedric, despite the defender not making a single appearance thus far after joining from Southampton in January.
"It was the plan from the start," Arteta added. "He’s been so, so unlucky because he was injured when he joined and then he had a fracture in his nose.
"He hasn’t played at all for us, but again, we think he’s a player that will improve and will help the squad depth.
"Hopefully we can do it."
Interestingly, there was no mention of a possible permanent transfer for Ceballos.
The midfielder has been a regular under Arteta since the turn of the year, but has been tipped for a return to Spain this summer with Valencia among the teams heavily linked with his signature.
Could it be that the Gunners have already decided to send Ceballos back to Real Madrid at the end of the season?
