The COVID-19 pandemic has complicated many things in football, including that many players contracts end at the end of June. Many players have agreed to extend their contracts on a short-term basis, meaning they can play for their club until the end of the season.
One player who has caused controversy by refusing to sign a short-term contract extension is Bournemouth’s, Ryan Fraser. His teammates Simon Francis, Artur Boruc, Andrew Surman and Charlie Daniels all agreed to extend their deals until the end of the season.
All four players are in similar circumstances to Fraser, in that they will be free agents at the end of the season. The quartet has decided to help their club to attempt to survive relegation, rather than leave. However, Fraser has decided to leave at the end of May, which deprives the Cherries of his services for the end of the season.
The 26-year-old has been in and out of the Bournemouth team in recent seasons. He has shown quality in patches of his top-flight career. His displays reportedly attracted the interest of Arsenal at one point. However, that was when he was enjoying a purple patch.
The Gunners may well be interested in signing the Scot this summer, especially as he will not cost a fee. There will also no doubt be other clubs interested in signing the diminutive former Aberdeen player at the end of the month. There is even speculation that he has already agreed terms on a deal with another club.
However, Fraser refusing to sign a short-term deal, especially with Bournemouth in such trouble may suggest to interested clubs that the Scottish international has a poor attitude. This may dissuade some clubs to from signing Fraser.
He won’t have a problem finding a new club, but there is a school of thought that Fraser could have signed the short-term deal and then left in the summer, which would not have left such a bad taste in the mouths of everybody associated with the club from the south coast.