There has been many articles discussing how much wages Arsenal would need to offer Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil to convince them to sign contract extensions at the Emirates, with one rumour saying that the Gunners are willing to pay as much as 300,000 GBP a week to Sanchez for him to sign on the dotted line.
It was no surprise then that Wenger was asked about these rumours in yesterday’s press conference, but although he refused to reveal any actual figures, he did try to explain why economically Arsenal could not just give Sanchez whatever he asks for. Wenger was asked whether huge wage offers are destabilising, and he replied: “Always, but we must accept that modern life has changed a little bit. We always had wages structures that were respected and players earn so much money now that the cases have become much more individual than global. You have many different opinions there. Some people tell me ‘just give him what he wants’. But then you cannot respect anymore any wages structure and you put the club in trouble as well.
“That is why you have to make the decision in an objective way. Always the club has to be the priority. I understand as well that top players are a big priority but at the end of the day even for important players you can only pay as much as you can afford.”
The wage bills at top clubs are increasing even faster than the earnings from TV and sponsorship deals, so you can understand his reasoning. If Arsenal agreed to double Ozil’s and Sanchez’s wages, then would they have to do the same for the other contract talks on the table? Like the Ox, for example…
When do you stop?
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