Arsene Wenger is insistent that Arsenal won’t be selling Alexis Sanchez amid persistent speculation that the forward will be joining Manchester City this summer.
Sanchez admitted last month that a decision had been made on his future as he alluded to an imminent departure from the Emirates, and more recently, the Chilean made clear his desire to play in the Champions League and revealed that he was waiting for Arsenal to make a decision on his future.
But speaking ahead of his side’s pre-season friendly with Bayern Munich, Wenger stressed that the club have now made the decision not to sell their prized possession.
“The decision has been made and we will stick to that,” the Frenchman said. “The decision is not to sell.”
Wenger also appeared to take issue with Sanchez’s remarks regarding the Champions League, and challenged the 28-year-old to help Arsenal return to Europe’s elite competition.
“I don’t give too much importance to things that are translated, you know,” he added. “The whole interview that I got didn’t really mean that.
“The main focus for us is to concentrate on the Premier League and the Premier League for me today is more important than the Champions League.
“We rested sometimes players in the Group stages of the Champions League for the Premier League so that’s become the biggest importance for us.
“For the rest… we played 20 years in the Champions League, that’s 17 years before Sanchez arrived and three years with him so he can get us back in there.”
Wenger, who admitted he has not spoken to Sanchez since his most recent interview in Chile, equally sought to downplay similarities between the forward’s current circumstances and when Arsenal sold Robin van Persie to Manchester United for £24m.
“Every case is different, Van Persie was going from 30 to 31, when he left he had one year on his contract. Sanchez is younger.”
Sanchez was the Gunners’ shining star in a disappointing campaign last season where they finished fifth and failed to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in Wenger’s reign.
The forward has made it clear that he is not willing to wait another year to return to European football’s premier club competition.
"I want to play in the Champions League,” he told reporters in his native Chile. "The decision isn't down to me, I need to wait for Arsenal.”