Chamakh: I will still not sign extension
442 Staff - Thursday 05 November 2009, 16:35
Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh - linked with a host of Premier League clubs including Arsenal, West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland this summer - has insisted he will still not sign a new contract with the French champions before the end of the season.
The 25-year-old was the subject of one of the longest running transfer sagas of the close-season, with the Moroccan international eventually staying put after les Girondins failed to agree a fee with any of the aforementioned clubs.
Chamakh - whose 13 league goals last term helped Bordeaux win a first French title in 10 years - reacted by revealing he would not sign an extension to his current deal that expires next summer, leaving him free to depart should an offer from elsewhere present itself.
And the forward, who has netted four Ligue 1 goals so far in 2009/10 and scored against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday, says he still stands by his word.
"I have decided at the moment that I am not going to sign a new contract, but that does not mean I will not be at Bordeaux next year," he told Sud-Ouest.
"I have seven to eight months to make the biggest decision of my life and I don't want to be rushed.
"The door is open for me to stay here and nobody is pushing me out.
"I will make sure I do the right thing for my life and my career."