Chelsea defender David Luiz has revealed that it will be revealed in the next five days whether he will be remaining at Stamford Bridge past the end of this season.
The former Paris Saint-Germain centre-back is out of contract at the end of the season and met with Blues officials last week for talks regarding a potential new deal.
The major stumbling block which has held up an agreement between the player and the club is Chelsea's one-year contract policy for players over the age of 30, with the Blues preferring to hand out rolling contracts to senior stars.
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Maurizio Sarri is hopeful that the Brazil international will remain in west London after becoming a lynchpin of Chelsea's defence during the course of the Italian's first season in charge.
The 32-year-old made a crucial clearance off the line to deny Seb Haller in extra time before stepping up to score in the penalty shootout as the Premier League outfit secured their place in the final of the Europa League with victory over Eintracht Frankfurt on Thursday.
And speaking after the game Luiz confirmed that an announcement regarding his future is now imminent.
"I live in this club so I can come here every single day," Luiz told reporters at Stamford Bridge. "Soon everybody is going to know. It will be before the Europa League final – in five days.
"I love this club. My great moments in football were here, especially the European titles – the Champions League and Europa League. My relationship with the fans has always been great since the first day I played here. I just try my best and make them happy."
Chelsea's qualification for the final in Baku means that they completed a set of four English finalists in Europe's two elite competitions - the first time in history that four teams from a single country have taken every place at UEFA's showpiece finals.
The Blues have already qualified for the Champions League through a top-four finish in the Premier League, but Arsenal need to beat Chelsea on May 29 to secure a spot having fallen short in their own league campaign.
And Luiz says it would be good to stop the Gunners achieving their aims, despite his positive personal relationship with the club's manager Unai Emery, who once coached him at PSG.
"It is going to be a difficult game," he added. "They have a great team and a great coach.
"He [Emery] knows how to win this competition. I worked with him a bit in Paris and I know how passionate he is. He knows how to play these kinds of games. It is up to us to prepare well.
"We have to try to win the trophy. We know that if we win, they will not be in the Champions League. This will be better for us because we put a fantastic team out of the Champions League. The pressure will be on both sides.
"This is a big European title. Everyone wants to be there. I am happy that English football is showing again it is at the top level, to have the finalists in the Champions League and Europa League. It’s also going to be the final of the Super Cup next season.
"So I think the English sides are finishing this season well and will start the next one well too. For many years it was difficult for the English teams to understand how to rotate the team and how to get to the same level for every competition. This season they did great."
Chelsea have endured a season of constant speculation regarding the future of their manager, and Sarri was once again booed by home fans at Stamford Bridge after replacing Ruben Loftus-Cheek late in the second half against Eintracht.
Luiz has thrived, though, under the new boss, with him having previously come to his defence in the more difficult moments this season, and he believes that Chelsea are being rewarded for their patience in not removing Sarri as his side push for a positive end to the campaign.
"I think during the season we have had different periods," Luiz concluded. "I remember in the first three months, people were so excited with us. They were saying ‘everyone has understood it so quickly. Oh, Sarri-ball - everyone is playing well'.
"'Now we can see Chelsea with the possession blah blah blah’. After that it changed to ‘nobody knows anything, Chelsea are not good enough’. I think this is normal in the first season of a coach. We have done our best throughout the season.
"Nobody bet that we would go to the last game of the Premier League having already qualified for the Champions League. We can finish in the top three, not just the top four. Remember, we were at one stage 11 or 12 points behind Tottenham and now we are there.
"It is not about how you start. It’s not about the beginning. It’s how you end. The end can be great for all of the top four now or for just some teams. Football is about this."
Chelsea round off their Premier League campaign away to Leicester City on Sunday before preparations begin for their showdown with Arsenal in Azerbaijan.
