Former Arsenal defender and BBC pundit Martin Keown is of the opinion that Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil will leave the club, but it will be only on Arsenal Wenger’s say.
Both players have just 12 months left on their contract. Sanchez was unavailable for action in the first game of the season, and it raised further doubts that Sanchez would be sold before the end of this transfer window.
Even though Ozil was involved in the 4-3 win over Leicester City, the German international is attracting attention from Barcelona.
Keown, however, thinks that Arsene Wenger will have the final say when it comes to their exit. The manager will not be able to prevent the players from leaving next summer, but he has all the powers to prevent the sale in the next two weeks.
Sanchez is on the wish list of Manchester City and PSG; both clubs are ready to pay an enormous transfer fee for the 28-year- old.
In the past, Arsenal have sold players approaching the end of their contracts in order to avoid the possibility of losing them on a Bosman.
Robin Van Persie and Samir Nasri are great examples of such sales, but it appears that Wenger has learnt from his mistakes and is not ready to yield to outside pressure.
Keown said to the BBC:
“I think both players are heading for the exit door and they will do it when [Arsene] Wenger decides not when they decide.”
After the brilliant opening day victory, Arsenal take on Stoke City and Liverpool in back-to- back away matches before returning to the Emirates stadium only in the second week of September.
