Arsene Wenger today admitted for the first time that Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil could leave Arsenal in January.
Both players are in long-running contract stand-offs having entered the final year of their existing deals, although Ozil’s agent yesterday claimed talks were "positive" and claimed the Germany international wanted to play in the Premier League for another two or three years.
However, Wenger confirmed this morning that no agreement is imminent with Ozil as the duo continuing to demand in excess of £300,000-a-week to stay at Emirates Stadium.
No deadline has been set on a final decision and Wenger remains hopeful Sanchez and Ozil will commit their futures to the club but, significantly, the Gunners boss refused to rule out cutting their losses in January should no agreement be reached.
In Pictures | Alexis Sanchez at Arsenal
Manchester City are expected to make a fresh bid for Sanchez after failing with a £60million move on deadline day, while Paris Saint-Germain lead a number of overseas clubs closely monitoring the situation. Ozil has generated interest from Manchester United, Inter Milan and Besiktas.
Wenger was always publicly defiant over keeping the pair ahead of the summer window but when asked by Standard Sport whether it was possible Sanchez and Ozil could be sold in January, he replied: "Once you are in our kind of situation we have envisaged every kind of solution. Yes, it’s possible."
On Ozil’s situation specifically, Wenger added: "I always said that the fact that we didn’t find an agreement last year doesn’t mean the player will necessarily leave.
"Both players look happy here and overall I hope that the situation can be turned around. At the moment, we are not close enough to announce anything."
