Arsene Wenger believes Tottenham may be forced to sell the likes of Harry Kane to cover off the cost of their move into a new stadium.
Spurs are set to take residence at their new home on the White Hart Lane site for the start of next season, by which time Arsenal will be under a new manager.
Wenger will leave the Gunners after Sunday’s final Premier League game of the season away at Huddersfield as his 22-year tenure comes to an end. The Frenchman oversaw Arsenal’s move from Highbury to the Emirates Stadium in 2006 and said the following nine years saw him do his “best job” as manager.
Wenger was forced to battle to keep Arsenal competitive despite the financial handicap of paying back bank loans which enabled the club to build their state-of-the-art stadium.
As well as being limited to what he could spend on transfers, Wenger also saw some of his prized assets sold on. And with rivals Tottenham preparing to move into their new ground, he warned the same troubles face Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino and the club’s owners.
“There are some things that have changed. The impact of the transfers has increased a lot,” Wenger replied when asked if Spurs now face the same issues Arsenal did 12 years ago. “The prices have gone up and the prices for the stadium have doubled. The transfers of the players have tripled or quadrupled.
“A £10 million player when we built the stadium was huge. Today a guy like Kane, I don’t know for much they can sell him. £100m? So they might get more supply. But they have to face it.”
When asked if Tottenham would have to sell players, Wenger then joked: “Yes, to Arsenal, maybe.”
Kane has not hinted he would be looking to leave Spurs this summer and, following the midweek win over Newcastle, the England striker offered a different take to Wenger when it comes to the new stadium.
The 24-year-old instead believes the prospect of playing in the Champions League at their new ground will be a big pulling factor in attracting new recruits this summer.
“You never know in football,” he said. “In transfer windows you can never put your finger on it. But it is a big attraction, a massive new stadium, a great team.
“The next step is winning stuff but this is a big year for us, hopefully we can have a massive year next year and win some trophies. [Champions League] is the big attraction, it is what everyone wants, especially the top players around the world. It’s massive.”
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