Marko Arnautovic’s future at Stoke City thrown into doubtStoke’s leading scorer this season is in negotiations over new deal but talks have stalled after he asked to be best paid player at club 
Marko Arnautovic’s future at Stoke City has been thrown into doubt after he rejected the club’s opening contract offer.
Arnautovic, Stoke’s leading scorer this season, is in negotiations over a new deal but talks have stalled after he asked to be the best paid player at the club.
Stoke’s highest earner is £12 million record signing Xherdan Shaqiri on around £70,000 a week but it is understood Arnautovic’s demands are far in excess of that.
Arnautovic is Stoke's top scorer this season
As a result, Stoke have temporarily suspended negotiations due to the stand-off and will attempt to reach a compromise later this month.
Arnautovic, 26, has 18 months to run on his current deal and is playing the best football of his Stoke career after scoring seven league goals this season.
The Austria international has formed a potent attacking axis with Shaqiri and Bojan and enhanced his growing reputation in the recent victories over Manchester City, Manchester United and Everton.
Arnautovic has given defenders plenty of headaches
There have even been comparisons with Paris St-Germain’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic and it is believed Arnautovic’s representatives are even claiming his salary should come close to the legendary Swedish striker.
Stoke remain hopeful of striking an agreement, however, as they bid to keep another of their talented players at the Britannia Stadium.
Mark Hughes, the Stoke manager, said earlier this week: “We have had conversations with Marko and that is ongoing. We’re working our way through the squad and where we feel we can offer deals to our players.
“Marko is one of those players we’d like to do something with and it’s taking a little bit longer. It is what it is, but the intention is there to keep our good players if we can.”
Signed from Werder Bremen for £2 million in 2013, Arnautovic arrived with a reputation as the bad boy of Austrian football.
But he has proven low maintenance over the past two years, though this latest development raises the prospect of Stoke losing him in the summer unless a deal can be agreed.
Arnautovic helped Austria qualify for the European Championships and is preparing for group games against Portugal, Iceland and Hungary.
Stoke are also determined to reach Wembley in the Capital One Cup despite losing their semi-final first leg against Liverpool on Tuesday evening.
Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has words with Marko Arnautovic
Jordon Ibe’s goal was enough to give Liverpool an advantage but striker Jon Walters insists they can cause an upset at Anfield.
“It’s going to be like a cup final now – a one-off game where we know what we have to do,” he said.
“We’ve shown we can beat anyone on our day so we’re still in there with a chance.
“We’ve seen in the past couple of months that they are a team that can be beaten at home so we go there full of hope that we can turn it around.
“We’ve got nothing to lose and go there trying to spring a surprise because they will be favourites in everyone’s eyes now. We’re still in this tie.”
Telegraph
