Arsene Wenger has warned Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez that Arsenal is big enough to survive without them.
Both Ozil and Sanchez, whose contracts expire in 18 months, are demanding salaries on a par with Paul Pogba, whose £290,000-a-week is over double what both currently earn at Arsenal.
Wenger has confirmed that Arsenal would rather let the pair leave on a free than sell them to a rival if they refuse to sign new deals and is convinced that the club could thrive even if they were to lose on or both of their star players.
“Arsenal is a big club,” Wenger said. “It is not one or two players who will make the difference to the club. The importance is that we are today in a financial position that is strong, that was not the case before.
“That means as well we are in a position where we can plan our future, and do what we want to do. What is important is always to take care of the values of the club, and the identity of the club, and not to depend too much on one or two players. The history of Arsenal is bigger than that.
“In every single club, at some stage, they have lost big players. Or they had big players without knowing. Or things like that happened everywhere. Every club is full of regrets and full of decisions. What matters is the globality of the decisions.”
Sanchez and Ozil have already drawn interest from a host of leading sides and the hunt for their signatures will only intensify should they choose not to put pen to paper on new terms at the Emirates.
Chelsea have been linked with a move for the Chilean striker and their manager Antonio Conte declined the chance to deny the story at his press conference on Friday.
