6 times Wenger said Arsenal wouldn't sell a player but sold him anyway

5) Robin van Persie - 2012

Robin van Persie spent eight seasons at Arsenal

Not since the days of Thierry Henry had Arsenal had a world-class striker leading the line. Of course, they always had Robin van Persie in the ranks but his injuries never gave him a good run of games.

All that changed in January 2011 when he returned to the squad and almost won the Golden Boot in spite of playing just half a season - falling two goals short of the 20 scored by Manchester United's Dimitar Berbatov and Carlos Tevez.

The 2011/12 season saw him return with a vengeance even though both Fabregas and Nasri were gone. Van Persie almost single-handedly led Arsenal to the top four with 30 goals in the league and 37 overall.

And all this while, his future was in doubt with a contract that ended in 2013. And the sharks were circling.

“Our plan is to keep Robin van Persie even if we buy any player. Our desire is clean and clear. Robin is the leader of our club and I would just like to specify that he is not at the end of his contract. He is under contract until 2013." - Wenger in 2012.

But Van Persie had also become disillusioned with the club's lack of ambition in the transfer market. Knowing that he did not have many years left at the top, he listened to Sir Alex Ferguson's offer and took his chance at winning a league title for the first time in his career.

Meetings with Wenger proved to be fruitless and he eventually moved for £24m with Arsenal selling him instead of losing him for free in 2013. It was a move that did not go down well with the fans as United won their 20th league crown with Van Persie scoring 26 goals.