Arsenal’s Mexican striker Carlos Vela has committed his future to the club by signing a long-term contract with the club.
The 20 year-old international was signed in January 2007, but spent the first 18 months of his Arsenal career on loan at Spanish sides Salamanca and Osasuna. During his first season representing the Gunner’s, Carlos was mainly used in the Carling Cup, but showed what he was capable of with a superb hat-trick against Sheffield United at the Emirates.
Following Robin Van Persie’s long-term injury, Vela has enjoyed more first team action in recent weeks and will be looking to fight Eduardo for a regular starting role up front. But Arsene Wenger has seen enough potential in him to tie him down to a long-term deal.
“We’re delighted that Carlos Vela has signed a new long-term contract with the club,” Wenger told the club’s official website. “Carlos is a fantastic talent and we have already seen glimpses of this during his performances. Let’s remember, he is still only 20 years old, so there is still a huge amount to come from this boy. We have invested a lot of time in Carlos, as we put him in Spain for two years to get some good experience. Now he’s back with us, we’re working hard with him every day and he is a very exciting player. We’re looking forward to seeing Carlos score many goals in an Arsenal shirt for a long time to come.”
Clearly Wenger has high hopes for the young forward, but many Arsenal fans feel that he has a long way to go before he can replace the likes of Robin Van Persie on a regular basis. But at least Vela has something in common with the Gunners faithful…his desire to win trophies for Arsenal:
“I’m very happy to sign a new contract and I’m very excited to be spending more years with Arsenal,” said the Mexican starlet. “I just want to work hard and help this great club win trophies. I want to stay here for a long time and it’s a great responsibility. I will keep working hard to show the boss and all the fans why I’m here.”
