Official: Marco Verratti to stay at PSG until 2026

Paris Saint-Germain and Italy international Marco Verratti agreed to extend the contract of the midfielder by two years until the summer of 2026, as made official by PSG on Wednesday ahead of the game against Strasbourg.

"PSG are pleased to announce that Marco Verratti has extended his contract for a further two seasons," said the official release published by the Parisian club on Wednesday. "The Italian international is now contracted to the club from the capital until 30 June 2026."

Arriving in Paris in the footsteps of Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2012, the Italian midfielder is today the player with the most caps for the Parisian squad.

With 399 appearances on his record after the game against Strasbourg played on Wednesday, Verratti is approaching the record held by Jean-Marc Pilorget (435) as the footballer with the most games played while donning the Rouge et Bleu jersey.

Marco Verratti is the most successful player in the history of the French Championship playing at PSG

Reports about this deal had been making the rounds for nearly a month now and the extension has pretty much been an assumed-to-eventually-get-done deal for weeks on end.

Marco Verratti has taken the opportunity to swear loyalty to Paris Saint-Germain multiple times in the past, so this extension hardly comes as a surprise for anyone paying the slightest attention to PSG and football as a whole.

It was an open secret that the Italian would end up renewing with the Parisian club, and PSG just made it official ahead of the return of the Ligue 1 in a victory against Strasbourg (2-1), capping an extraordinary 2022 calendar year.

"It gives me great pride to extend my contract with Paris Saint-Germain," said Marco Verratti after agreeing to his two-year extension. "I arrived in Paris more than 10 years ago, in this city that I consider my second home. I am very grateful (for everything that he's experienced in Paris."

Verratti conceded that "it was obvious to me that my story would continue to be written here," and he also said that he "hopes to win many more trophies in the Rouge & Bleu shirt."