Vinicius Jr has agreed a new six-year contract with Real Madrid after rejecting an attempt by Arsenal to lure the winger to north London.
The 26-year-old star was offered improved terms in excess of £19million a year following stalled contract negotiations. That offer proved sufficient for the player to commit his long-term future to the club.
Talks between the player's agents, Real Madrid general director Jose Angel Sanchez and chief scout Juni Calafat took place in Madrid on Wednesday. Manager Jose Mourinho also underlined that the Brazilian forward is firmly in his plans.
Arsenal made initial enquiries into the player last week. Gunners manager Mikel Arteta had insisted that the Premier League winners will be "very ambitious" during the summer transfer window.
Despite increased confidence at the Bernabeu, Vinicius Jr created uncertainty on Wednesday night by deleting his entire Instagram history. The page, which has 63.9million followers, currently displays no images, bio, or profile picture.
However, reports on Wednesday suggested Real Madrid were bullish about their chances of seeing off interest from north London, particularly with Mourinho's backing. The player had been open to a move to the Premier League champions if he could not agree terms.
Contract negotiations and agreement
Following the agreement, Vinicius Jr posted on Instagram: "Eight years at the Bernabeu are too short... Six more years, and then forever." Real Madrid said in a statement: "Vinicius Jr has become one of the most important players in one of the most successful periods in our history."
Negotiations between Real Madrid and Vinicius Jr's camp had been ongoing for 18 months, with a major sticking point being the re-signing fee. Real Madrid did not want to lose the Brazilian on a free transfer, with his contract set to expire in less than a year.
The player was thought to view any contract he signs with Los Blancos, where he has played since 2018, as the defining deal of his career and recognition of his efforts that have seen him become a Ballon d'Or contender in their colours.
Vinicius Jr returned to join his teammates at their pre-season camp on Monday to undergo standard start-of-season medical tests and train for the first time under new manager Mourinho.
Arsenal transfer window plans
Arsenal would have accelerated their interest in the player if he had rejected Real Madrid's terms. The Premier League champions, who had been monitoring several versatile forwards during the Vinicius Jr saga, must now look elsewhere as they target an attacker.
Arteta has remained upbeat about his plans for the rest of the transfer window following the £34million signing of Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge. Speaking after Arsenal's pre-season friendly against Girona, Arteta addressed the club's strategy.
"We expect to have movements in the next few weeks, obviously," Arteta said. "We want to get better like anybody else, and you can see the transfer market and our opponents... We won't sit still and we are very ambitious with what we are doing."
"The margins are very small. Because we want to get better and the level is going to increase," Arteta added. "We need to increase the competition internally. We need to make sure we identify the things that we don't have in the team."
