Vinicius Jr to Arsenal takes fresh twist as new stumbling block emerges over Real Madrid contract

Vinicius Junior's Real Madrid contract stand-off shows no sign of being resolved - and it appears to be a more complex situation than initially believed.

Vinicius' current Real contract expires at the end of June 2027, meaning he is in the final 12 months of the deal he initially signed in 2022.

He has been linked with a move to Premier League champions Arsenal if an agreement cannot be reached, with Gunners boss Mikel Arteta keen on signing the Brazil winger.

Vinicius' representatives, Roc Nation, criticised what they described as 'fake and damaging information' that had been published 'for attention-seeking purposes', though did not state whether their statement was aimed at reports surrounding Vinicius or other clients on their books.

READ MORE: Vinicius Junior's agency issues explosive statement amid Arsenal transfer reports

The Athletic previously revealed that, as far as contract talks were concerned, Vinicius had requested a new deal worth €30 million per year, including salary, performance bonuses and a renewal bonus.

It is claimed that the presence of a renewal bonus has been a point of contention between player and club, and that the 26-year-old would be open to lowering his overall demands to stay at Real.

Significantly, however, a new report from Spanish outlet AS notes that Vinicius also 'aspires' to a particular agreement over his image rights.

The outlet claims that the Brazilian wants a similar agreement to the one signed by Kylian Mbappe, whereby the Frenchman receives nearly 100 per cent of his image rights as part of his Real Madrid contract.

It is noted that 18 different brands have Vinicius under contract, including Nike, Visa, PlayStation, Apple and Gatorade.

Vinicius reportedly takes home 50 per cent of his image rights under his current contract terms.

What are image rights?

In football, image rights are effectively any intellectual property that is unique to a player, such as their name and nickname, images and photographs, voice, autograph and social media handles.

The Premier League has strict regulations when it comes to image rights and they often add extra time to negotiations over player contracts.

It can often go as far as a club negotiating with the player, before then negotiating with the image rights company that the player can set up to manage their rights.

There can also be conflicts when it comes to products sponsored by the club and products sponsored by the player.

For instance, one of Arsenal's global partners is Coca-Cola, while Vinicius has an agreement with drinks rival Pepsi. There is no suggestion that this would have any impact on Arsenal's negotiations with the winger.

Sporting director Andrea Berta is said to have already opened talks with Vinicius' representatives, and the Gunners are waiting on the outcome of contract discussions with Real Madrid to potentially complete one of the biggest Premier League transfers of all time.