Arsenal captain Laurent Koscielny will meet club officials this week in London to learn the sanctions he faces after refusing to go on the preseason tour to the U.S. on Thursday with the rest of the first-team squad, sources told ESPN FC.
The French defender feels the club has disrespected him because of a dispute over his contract. Koscielny, 33, has one year left on his current deal and wanted to commit to two more seasons but received no offer from the Gunners despite being open to an option based on appearances and bonuses.
- Premier League fixtures 2019-20 in full
- Who has qualified for Europe from the Premier League?
- When does the transfer window close?
He is now training with the under-23 squad at Arsenal's facility in London Colney. It appears there is no way back now between the London club and the defender.
Since he made his decision public, Koscielny has now received a firm contract offer from French club Bordeaux, while Lyon, Marseille and Rennes are also interested in signing him. He has yet to publicly speak about the incident, but Arsenal were angry with his decision.
Sources told ESPN FC that Koscielny told Arsenal boss Unai Emery on Wednesday that he is happy to train with the reserves until a solution is found.
Koscielny, who joined Arsenal from French side Lorient in 2010, has made over 350 appearances for the club. He last signed a contract extension in 2017, with that deal expiring at the end of the 2019-20 campaign.
The centre-back suffered a serious knee injury against Atletico Madrid in May 2018, ruling him out of France's victorious World Cup-winning campaign that summer; he returned to action last December.
Arsenal will face the Colorado Rapids in a friendly on July 16 before taking on Bayern Munich, Fiorentina and Real Madrid in the International Champions Cup. They kick off their Premier League campaign at Newcastle on Aug. 11.
