Arsène Wenger has insisted that Alexis Sánchez has not told him he wants to leave Arsenal.
Speculation has mounted over the future of the Chile forward this summer, with Sánchez’s contract at the Emirates expiring at the end of the upcoming season.
However, Wenger believes the 28-year-old – who last month said he knew where he would be playing next season but stopped short of announcing his plans –could still extend his stay in north London.
“The players come back and we expect them to respect their contracts,” Wenger said on Tuesday.
Asked whether Sánchez had told him he wanted to leave, the Frenchman said: “No. Nobody knows today if Sánchez will be in the final year of his contract next season, because he can as well extend his contract with us at the start of the season or during the season, so it’s not necessarily the last year of his contract with Arsenal.”
Manchester City are reported to be among the former Barcelona player’s admirers, but Wenger reiterated that he would not be prepared to sell to a rival Premier League club. “That’s in the continuity of what I said at the end of the season; that’s what we will do,” he added.
Wenger also admitted his interest in the Monaco forward Kylian Mbappé, but admits there will be plenty of competition for the 18-year-old’s services.
“He’s a player who, when he gets up in the morning, can choose where he wants to go,” added Wenger. “There are not many players with that kind of luck because he’s 18 years of age and all of Europe has a red carpet open for him. Nobody can say he is not interested in a player of that calibre, all the clubs are interested in him.”
The Arsenal manager added that Mbappé’s team-mate Thomas Lemar was another player he would be keen to sign. “He’s a player that we follow yes, we look at,” Wenger said. “We are looking at more signings. But there’s nothing really concrete about any signings.”