Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood has taken a dim view on Robin Van Persie's expected exit, saying the club will not let go of their striker on the cheap, as Arsene Wenger reiterated his desire to hold onto the player.
Van Persie is expected to leave the Gunners, after declaring his intention to not sign a new contract, forcing the club to sell the player, who has just one year left on his contract; meaning if Van Persie were to play next season for Arsenal, he would be free to leave for nothing at the end of the 2012-13 English Premier League campaign.
Arsene Wenger has reiterated his stance on keeping the striker at the club, and Hill-Wood said he was mystified by Van Persie's decision to ask for a move.
"He is a world-class player and we don't want to give him away," Hill-Wood is quoted as saying in the Daily Star.
"If he is determined to leave that is up to him, but giving him away is not on our agenda.
"To be honest I do not understand him at all. I understood Cesc Fabregas wanting to go home to Barcelona last summer. I had sympathy with that.
"But I thought Robin was happy at Arsenal, especially after the season he had with us."
Van Persie, who is being chased by Manchester United, Manchester City and Juventus, scored 37 goals last season in all competitions, and was won multiple player of the year awards, and his decision to leave has left the majority of the Arsenal fans incensed, who see it as a lack of loyalty to the club that stuck with him in previous several injury-prone years.
According to the Daily Star, Arsenal might even look to keep 28-year-old at the club till January, after growing tired of players wanting to leave the club. Arsenal are desperate to make a statement about their state as a European power, and believe the departures of high-profile names is causing severe harm to the image of the club, as a big European team.
Wenger, speaking to reporters in Shanghai, ahead of the club's pre-season friendly against Manchester City, said the situation with Van Persie had not changed. "There is nothing to elaborate," Wenger said. "The options are clear: we want to keep our players. I would be happy for him to stay in the English Premier League -- at Arsenal."
In a surprisingly candid admission, Wenger said he would be definitely bringing in more players this summer, after already sealing the signings of Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud. He, however, refused to mention the names of potential targets.
"You see I have come here to say as little as possible," he said.
"I am ready to talk a lot, but not a lot about transfers, because it is a very fragile subject and a very secret subject. We bought Giroud and Podolski and I hope that we 'bought' Diaby and Wilshere too, who didn't play at all last season.
"We will add Wilshere to the squad as soon as possible. But we are not at the end of it (transfers). We will still bring players in."
Asked about the expected arrival of Spain international Santi Cazorla, Wenger remained coy. "I share the opinion of Mikel Arteta. Cazorla is a great player," said Wenger.
Arteta, when asked about his compatriot, had expressed his admiration for the 27-year-old Malaga playmaker. "I cannot talk about the actual situation but I can say that I know him as a player really well.
"And he's a top, top player. He has got unbelievable quality and talent and that is all I can say."
