Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is currently suffering from a big headache after two of the club’s star players, Mesut Özil and Alexis Sanchez, are both playing ‘contract rebels’ as their current spells in North London are set to expire at the end of next season.
The German international and Chilean winger have set their wage demands so high (£384,000-a-week) that the club aren’t sure what to do with the players. Özil, however, is closer to sign a new deal with the club, but Sanchez seems adamant of lowering his demands.
Sanchez’s situation has therefore began to be closely watched by Chelsea, as Antonio Conte is reportedly keen to link the 27-year-old with Eden Hazard and Diego Costa upfront in the Blues’ attack, the Mirror reports.
On this morning’s press conference Wenger suggested that he’d rather keep the players for the next 18 months and set them free as free agents, than sell either one of them big for a rival club.
18 months is quite long in football you know. They have 18 months contract and are completely committed and will do well as long as they are here. Beyond that we will try to extend their contract.
No matter what happens they will stay 18 months, and hopefully much longer. But I can’t make a subject of that in every press conference. The less you talk about it the better it is.
At some stage you have to accept negotiations are private and secret, we don’t have to come out every day to explain everything. We are professionals, we’ll work until the last day of our contracts.
– Arsene Wenger, Metro
Alexis Sancgez has been in terrific form this season, as he’s currently the joint top scorer in the Premier League alongside Diego Costa with 11 goals to his name.
