Contract Rebels Set to Leave the Emirates Stadium in Massive Player Exodus

Highly placed sources have reported that three of Arsene Wenger's stars are set to leave the North London giants in the coming days. The three players at the heart of this reputed exodus are club captain and talisman Franscesc Fabregas, the last member of the "Invincibles", longstanding left-back Gael Clichy and the French maestro Samir Nasri.

French tactician Wenger has long known of Fabregas's intention to one day return to Catalunya and take his place in the Blaugrana juggernaut and has been  somehow able to keep his wondrously talented playmaker from the clutches of the Camp Nou outfit. Numerous bids have been made to land the La Masia graduate but have been rebuffed by the Gunners; this transfer window however, appears to convey  a sense of the inevitability finally happening, Cesc returning to ply his trade alongside his pals from La Masia (Lionel Messi and Gerard Pique) and his team mates with La Furia Roja (Xavi, Iniesta,etc). With the disharmony and disappointment derived from ending another season that promised so much initially but ultimately culminated in a sixth season without silverware fresh in the mind, Fabregas has continually watched his aforementioned  childhood friends and international team mates reap amazing success domestically and on the European front. The Arsenal captain's performance has also dropped over the last 18 months, possibly a testament to his disillusionment and that maybe he has run his course at Ashburton Grove. Wenger is as shrewd a business mind as the game has ever known and he must be mulling over the thought of finally parting with his prized asset in the best interests of all concerned.

As for the other two players strongly linked to exits from the Emirates, Clichy and Nasri, Wenger has made it blatantly clear that he will not be held at ransom and is contemplating parting with the French duo this shopping window as to prevent them walking on a free transfer in the next 12 months ala Mathieu Flamini in 2008. The major stumbling block in this transfer saga is the fact that Wenger has repeatedly declared that he  "will not do any business with English rivals" and the teams that appear most keen on acquiring the French pair are those that compete in the Barclays Premier League. Both sides of Manchester, Liverpool and Chelsea are the teams that have been continually linked to the two and with Clichy and Nasri yet to make any progress regarding renewing their contracts with the Gunners, the expectations are that this matter will be resolved within the next week with Arsenal pre-season set to begin in earnest on July 7.

For all their undoubted talent, Nasri and Clichy have in no way shape or form consistently exhibited that they can take Arsenal from perennial bridesmaids to the pinnacle of European football. Samir Nasri, for all his flamboyance and mesmeric feet, has only played at a high level for the Gunners for 6 months while Gael Clichy, after initially impressing everyone as Ashley Cole's replacement, has regressed significantly post-2008. It is strange at best that these two players are holding the club at ransom demanding astronomical  wages before renewing their existing club contracts. It is scandalous that Nasri is demanding wages that would easily supplant the club's current top performer  Robin van Persie and even club captain Fabregas as Arsenal's top earner. As for Clichy, his numerous defensive blunders speak volumes as to why he should be ushered quickly to the exit door and why Wenger should get a left-back that can actually defend like what Sagna does on the opposite side of the field.

Arsenal FC needs players that are loyal to the club and not those like Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure who were plucked from relative obscurity as unpolished stones and developed into household names in North London and across Europe only to shun a perennial English giant like Arsenal in exchange for the millions of Sheikh Mansour's considerably deep pockets. It is amusing when we recall how the two aforementioned players were derided by the likes of Fabregas,Nasri and Clichy for their perceived disloyalty to the Gunners; with the shoe firmly on the other foot now, it is interesting to think what the contract rebels now think about Adebayor and Toure.

It should become palpable to Wenger that he needs to develop a ruthless streak when dealing with these under performing 'stars'; for too long the Arsenal boss has defended these players vehemently despite their consistent abysmal performances only to be then embarrassed when the same players push for transfers away from his club. Wenger has tried to build teams since the 'Invincibles' cycle came to an end only to be thwarted by players who he has trusted demanding moves away from North London thus causing his projects to repeatedly fall short.