Arsenal vs. Bournemouth: Arsene Wenger's Key Pre-Match Press Conference Quotes

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger discussed the development of the club's on-loan midfielder Jack Wilshere on Friday and revealed the player will be offered a new deal by the Gunners before returning next summer.

Bournemouth, who have taken the England international on a temporary basis, will be the visitors to the Emirates Stadium in the Premier League on Sunday, and Wenger was quizzed about Wilshere in his pre-match press conference.

Per the Arsenal Twitter feed, the Frenchman is happy with how the arrangement has progressed:

After some poor fortune with injuries in recent seasons, Wilshere has been able to string together a much-needed run of matches in Bournemouth colours. Despite these woes, Wenger insisted the Gunners still have complete faith in the 24-year-old.

"Of course," said Wenger when asked if Wilshere would be offered a new contract at the club, per Liam Prenderville of the Daily Mirror. "Ideally [it will be addressed before next summer]. We have to plan around the new year."

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Wenger also spoke about the impact former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard had on the Premier League after he announced his retirement from the game on Thursday.

"For me, he was a huge player," Wenger said, per Prenderville. "It was a bit surprising because I thought he had two, three more years. I thought he would play until 40. He was a fantastic player who had the qualities that every midfielder dreams of. On top of that, he was loyal to Liverpool. It's a quality that you don't find a lot these days."

Arsenal will be seeking to get back to winning ways against Bournemouth following three consecutive draws in all competitions.

Recent displays against Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain have been especially disappointing from the Gunners, with the latter draw meaning Arsenal are unlikely to finish top of their UEFA Champions League group due to an away-goals rule; it's a regulation Wenger doesn't agree with.

"It is not over but 90 per cent PSG will finish top of the group on this 'famous' away-goal rule," said the Arsenal manager, according to Prenderville. "I have been against this for a while now. In this case, we had two draws with them and the away goal is what will make the difference."

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Ahead of the match against Bournemouth, Wenger also provided an update on the fitness of some key players. Unfortunately for the Gunners, there was bad news on Santi Cazorla and Hector Bellerin, per James Olley of the Evening Standard:

It means Wenger has some intriguing decisions to make in terms of team selection on Saturday. Indeed, a lot of supporters were left disappointed in midweek when Granit Xhaka was left out of the starting XI, having earned a lot of favour among fans following his fine start to life at the club.

The Arsenal boss offered his own assessment of Xhaka's start and praised the application shown by the Swiss international on the field:

It's an important game for Arsenal. After a bright beginning to the season that contained some thrilling attacking football, momentum does seem to have slipped away in recent encounters.

But the Gunners remain in the mix for the Premier League title, trailing leaders Chelsea by a mere three points after 12 games, and they have yet to lose since the opening day. With the Blues set to meet Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday evening, a win over Bournemouth will be key in securing a boost at the expense of at least one of their title rivals.