Cesc Fàbregas has said that he is talking to Arsenal about a new deal, a little more than a year after he signed the longest contract in Premier League history. The midfield player agreed his present eight-year contract about the time, in September 2006, that he inspired the team to victory at Old Trafford, a ground he will revisit in the FA Cup fifth round tomorrow with Arsenal facing injury problems.

Fàbregas was responding to speculation in Spain that Barcelona would try to sign him in October, which seems at odds with a statement in the summer from Txiki Beguiristáin, the Barcelona sporting director, who said that the Catalan club would not pay an excessive sum to sign a player that had left them. Arsenal reiterated that Fà-bregas has six years left on his deal and it may be that the negotiations will simply focus on the player’s wage.

“I have a contract in force until 2014 and I am talking with my club, who are interested in renegotiating it,” Fàbregas said on a Spanish radio station. “I want to succeed at Arsenal and that the club wants me is fundamental. I am proud [to be linked to Barcelona], I am from Barcelona and I have played there. But I only think of winning as many titles as possible here at Arsenal.”

Arsène Wenger will be forced to shuffle his defence for the match against Manchester United with as many as ten players out, including Robin van Persie and Tomas Rosicky. The Arsenal manager will, however, be able to pick Kolo Touré and Emmanuel Eboué for the first time since the victory over Burnley in the third round of the competition five weeks ago. Both played for Ivory Coast in the African Cup of Nations.

Touré is likely to replace Philippe Senderos, who has a thigh problem, and Eboué or Justin Hoyte could replace Bacary Sagna, who has been given time off for personal problems. Gaël Clichy is unlikely to play because of a hamstring and knee problem.

Wenger had expected to play Theo Walcott for some part of the match but the winger has a thigh injury. “The team will be as strong as possible, so we have a good chance to win without putting the rest of the season into jeopardy by risking injuries,” he said. “But I will have a busy night thinking about what I’ll do and how I will do it.”