Arsenal’s legendary goalkeeper, David Seaman, says the only way Arsene Wenger can win Arsenal a Premier League title this year – or the coming years – is to ensure he splashes the money required to sign on Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil to new long-term deals.
Seaman says Arsenal could win titles back in the day only because they were always intent on keeping their ‘special’ players citing examples of former Arsenal superstars in Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira.
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“To win the title Arsenal have got to keep their best players,” he said.
“We used to do that. When big clubs came calling for Thierry Henry or Patrick Vieira, we always managed to send them packing. But then the club went through a phase of selling them, although maybe that was partly because finances forced our hand.
“Now they are in a situation where they have a great chance of winning the Premier League for the first time in 13 years and they don’t need to sell.
“The Emirates stadium is paid for, the bank manager is happy, so if it means paying Sanchez and Ozil what they are worth – or perhaps even a little bit more – just do it.”
Arsenal have to spend big to buy Sanchez replacement
Seaman is also thinking of what would happen should Arsenal part with Alexis Sanchez citing that paying an enormous transfer fee to adequately replace him isn’t the best way to go about with things.
“If Arsenal lost Sanchez now, they would have to spend a colossal amount of money, maybe £50-60 million, to bring in a replacement of his quality,” he added.
“Why not just go the extra mile to keep him and Ozil at Arsenal? They are special players, and it’s special players who make the difference between winning the major trophies and coming close,” said Seaman.
Arsenal have to be ambitious
“People talk about breaking the wage structure and upsetting the applecart, but in the dressing room nobody will complain if the club accommodates a couple of higher earners who are in that ‘special’ bracket and they deliver the title.
“Arsene must make sure that if either of them leaves – and all the supporters hope it doesn’t come down to this – it must not be for financial reasons. I’m all for good housekeeping, but sometimes in football you’ve got to push the boat out a bit further. You have to stay ambitious.”
Also Read: EPL 2016/17: Joey Barton feels Alexis Sanchez is better than Paul Pogba and deserves higher wage
Alexis Sanchez's and Mesut Ozil's deals run out at the end of next season and Wenger has been reassuring fans that they're doing all they can to tie both of them down to new contracts. First up, however, is the Premier League fixture against Stoke City later tonight.
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