Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has warned his current players that they won’t develop further once they leave the Emirates. Wenger’s words are believed have been targeted at Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, who are both set to leave the club at the end of this season.
Although it appears the Arsenal manager was speaking about Sanchez and Ozil, his comments were initially in response to former Gunners’ full-back Kieran Gibbs. The defender left the Emirates over the summer and joined West Brom. Gibbs has stated he will improve as a player at The Hawthorns; however, his former manager Wenger doesn’t believe that is the case.
“You look at the players who performed here and left, and you come back to me after,” Wenger said. “You hope it goes well for them. I focus on my squad.
“You should ask him [Gibbs] what he means about being a better defender at West Brom. He will certainly have to defend more because we are a team that goes forward and they are a team who focus more on defending.
“[Gibbs] was a regular player many times, but he had some fitness worries so we didn’t offer him a new deal and that’s why he decided to go.”
Wenger has been bullish in his stance over Ozil and Sanchez, and despite the club offering the two players new contracts, neither has signed a deal. Sanchez was nearly sold to Manchester City on the final day of the transfer window. However, the Gunners were unable to make a deal for Monaco’s Thomas Lemar, which prevented the team from selling Sanchez.
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