Arsene Wenger has reiterated his desire to keep Robin van Persie at Arsenal, but insists that the matter needs to be resolved soon as it must not hinder the club’s preparations for the upcoming season.

 

The Arsenal captain has one year remaining on his contract at the Emirates and has announced that he will not sign an extension.

 

This has led to interest in the left-footed striker from fierce Premier League rivals Manchester United and Manchester City, as well Serie A outfit Juventus – and all three teams are believed to have placed bids for the Dutch star.

 

Wenger, while speaking to the club’s official website during the pre-season Malaysia tour, emphasised his desire to keep Van Persie at Arsenal, but indicated that the striker may be sold in order to safeguard the interests of the club.

 

“Van Persie is a world-class striker and I am a big supporter of him”, said the French manager. “He has one year left and is in demand but our desire is to keep him”.

 

Yet the French tactician stressed, “we will do what is in the best interests of the club. If you have a decoder in your head you can decode that”.

 

The experienced manager is wary of the aftereffects of long drawn out transfer sagas. The Gunners had a poor start last season due to Cesc Fabregas’ and Samir Nasri’s late departures which hampered the squad’s preparation for the season badly.

 

Now Wenger is determined not to be bitten twice and says that the club will be looking to put an end to this story as soon as possible. Indeed, they have already set a deadline for Van Persie’s transfer.

 

“The official transfer deadline is 31st August, but then we can create an internal deadline”, said the 62-year-old. “Of course, I believe the transfer market should stop before the season starts anyway”, he added, indicating that the Arsenal star man may well be sold before the new Premier League campaign begins.

 

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