Mathieu Flamini shocked Gunners fans this week by quitting the London outfit to join Italian giants AC Milan, however the player exodus may not be over just yet. Reports claim that Alexander Hleb is Inter Milan-bound and will buy out the remainder of his contract for £3m. With Real Madrid also publically confirming their interest in Spanish star Cesc Fabregas, Wenger will have a fight on his hands to persuade the young Spaniard to stay put.

Wenger has always been known for not only spotting bright young talent, and getting the best out of them, but also for only letting players go when he felt the time was right. These include former Arsenal stars such as Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars, but on the back of Flamini’s best season at the club, aged just 24, and Hleb also having a great season at the age of just 27, it would appear as though Wenger is struggling to hold on to their best players.

So are players starting to see Arsenal as a stepping stone to bigger and better things? Are Arsenal fans getting worried about what lays ahead with European giants targeting Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Adebayor?

Hasn't Fabregas openly stated that Pep Guardiola is his all-time football hero, and the person he idolises on the pitch? Well, that same Guardiola has taken over the reins at Barcelona, and with an affiliation with the Catalan club since his youth, it only seems inevitable that he'll return. Perhaps not immediately, but the lure must be straining.

The problem as far as i can see is the fact that Arsenal have not won a trophy in each of their last 3 seasons. Many of the players, although emerging into the limelight only recently with their best form whilst being at the club, have been there for a while, and the lack of silverware will be something of a concern. Especially when their form is enough to attract the interest of Europe's finest clubs.

Money can be a factor - to some domineering - but ultimately the best players want to achieve greatness, which is achieved via winning the best domestic leagues, the Champions League and the main international tournaments, the World Cup and European Championships.

Arsenal either have to win the league or Champions League next season or buy a high-profile player like Ronaldinho for the stars to stay. I believe that if they fail to get anything next season many of the stars will be leaving ( e.g. Fabregas, Hleb if he's still there)

I think this is a major problem actually,and i am very worried about it. I think what these players don't realize is that Wenger style of football is superior by far,and takes time to develop into perfect sync with all on the field.It seems they have either lost faith in the system or just gone for the money,because Arsenals performance against the likes of AC Milan was very good and guy's like Kaka etc were rendered harmless.
I don't think the players realize how much Wengers system is rated by legendary clubs like Real madrid ,Barcelona,Milan and the rest of the world.
What Arsenal as a club need to do is bring their salary cap into line with there rest of the top teams or this will be a conveyor belt that won't stop any time soon.I think the time is rife for new backers to come and take over the club before it's too late.

I wonder what would happen to Arsenal if Wenger left to coach Barca.

Worried? No.

Should I be worried? No.

Why? Flamini is replaceable. He was a utility player until he found some technique & form this season. He thought because of one great season he deserved to be high up on the payroll. It doesn't work like that. Wenger doesn't run a charity for footballers. I'd be more worried if one-season wonders (so far in his career) were able to demand massive paychecks and status at the Club because of that one season. Arsenal stick by their terms and did what was necessary.

If Flamini cared more about money than the Club, then it's good riddance.

Ashley Cole left us and Clichy has come in and almost done better than replace him. Patrick Vieira left us and Cesc stepped into the big shoes and became the best player in the squad. Henry left and a 30-goal-per season man was apparently lacking, especially with doubts over van Persie's fitness - Wenger got the best out of Adebayor and made a smart signing with Eduardo initially who banged in a few key goals here & there.

Even if we lose World-class players like Cole, Vieira and Henry - Wenger usually makes up for it in some way or another, even without splashing £30m on a player. OK, Adebayor is no Henry, but he actually improved our team-play game and banged in more than enough goals to match some of Henry's top tallies! Besides, Flamini is no World-class player and Hleb is has been an inconsistent disappointment overall in his Arsenal career so far.

Hleb's potential exit is a rumour until he actually signs for Inter or whoever. Which doesn't make a big difference, Hleb has evidently struggled to fulfill his potential in this League and despite Wenger giving him his chances in his more 'natural' position, he hasn't really showed the consistency to be regarded as an important player. If we lose Hleb it won't be a big dent.

There are plenty of great players who would love to join Arsenal right now. The fact that we give "lesser names" big chances depending on their potential, attitude and quality and the fact that we play an attractive style of football which is admired by probably every top level footballer means that we can attract those type of players to fill those gaps.

No matter how good a player is, if he isn't happy, he isn't happy. Look how we lost Reyes - he did well for us but didn't like the Country or the style of football he was having to face. Hleb will be thinking alike as he is a player who takes more kicks than anyone.

We're attracting and moulding some of the best young footballers on the planet here and they're all growing and improving. I do think we need a couple of players due to the losses of a few and due to the injury proneness of others - but other than that, we've got a strong squad and will compete with the higher-spending Clubs next season again.

i find it funny how an Arsenal fan can be worried. They need to take a look at the other teams in England and in the end they will feel privileged for the football they get to watch every week. I very much doubt that i will ever get a chance to see a Newcastle team that will be as good a team as Arsenal have been over the past few years. They are very lucky fans and just because one player has went, they should not be worried.

That's just it.

Some people seek ultimate glory every year, no matter how. With how the game has developed now and how it's become such a World market business and money generally speaks louder than anything, I am happier to see Arsenal go a few seasons trophyless but keeping the finances a little more sensible and yet producing & nurturing high class football.

It'd be nice to win trophies of course, but with the development Wenger has put in progress I can only see trophies coming to this Arsenal squad. I thought we were very unlucky this season with how some key games went, injuries and the timing of all the negative ongoings.

Losing Cesc would be a huge, huge, huge blow. But there's nothing to suggest that. Guardiola might take over at Barcelona, but Cesc can't join a Club on the basis of that. Who's to say Guardiola will make it as a Manager if he even gets the job? It's tough at Barca as you all well know and Cesc's hero could be sacked only a few months after Cesc signed (touch wood). Cesc might not fit into their system or Madrid's system. No matter how good he is, he's been moulded as a Gooner for this Club and he has defeated Giants in his youth because of what Wenger has given him - I don't want to say that he won't leave in the next few years because footballers are usually unpredictable con-men when money & glory is flashed in front of their eyes. But for me Cesc has become a vital part of Arsenal and to disband that to join Barcelona who are currently in no better position than us, with failing superstars like Henry there - there's no real worry that Cesc would join.

And other than keeping Cesc, we have no real worries. The spine of our team is still intact and only a few signings here and there are required - even at that, Wenger can always make something work.

But why are these players chosing to leave Arsenal? This hasn't really been an issue throughout Wengers reign as Arsenal boss, with the exception of Reyes - Wenger always talked players around into staying, and the team spirit was great.

It is often said that they are a young team, and have the potential to mature into a great team, however if they cannot keep hold of their best performing players they will never reach their full potential at Arsenal. What if Cesc chose to leave also - surely that would be a critical blow for Wenger, and he would need to start the rebuilding all over again...

I know it is all if's and but's but if I was an Arsenal fan right now, I would be a little concerned. Flamini found great form this season, and if that was a sign of things to come, it is a huge loss to Arsenal - especially considering they didn't get a penny for him. I don't think you will miss Hleb so much if he chose to leave, but again for only £3m, Arsenal are being robbed! For all Wengers qualities of picking up players for cheap and turning them into stars, he has made fundemental errors by letting these players leave for next to nothing due to contracts coming to an end.

i agree. it would be a huge loss but unlike flamini you have to accept a bid for cesc to move and thats not gonna happen. Wenger has made sure that your team is gonna be at the top of this league for years to come if he can keep most of the young players there. They will not all do a Flamini...plus he will add yet more talent in the summer, so happy days!

I will make this rather short since the Axeman took care of it in his posts and I'm pretty much behind him on everything he's saying.

I am not worried. I think the future holds bright for Arsenal. Buying players or not, losing players or not; we have plenty of quality. What where we supposed to finish this year with the players we have? Bottom of the top half of the table? And look at where we were for most of the season? I am not worried about the future of Arsenal, nor the players we have or don't have. I think other clubs should be a bit more worried, United and Liverpool could potentially have a lot to worry about due to the massive financial debt both clubs are in due to the new owners. If they were to walk away from the club, it could be devastating depending on who buys in. (But that is a complete different issue)

However, what I am disappointed at is the lack of loyalty to a club. This goes not only to certain players at Arsenal, but also towards players of other clubs as well. But, to relate it to Arsenal. Many of these players were virtually nobodies before coming to Arsenal. Flamini; did anyone know him prior to him coming to Arsenal in 2004? Arsenal made Flamini who he is today. What are his odds that he'll be half the player or be a complete bust at Milan? Hleb; how many people really knew who he was and followed him before coming to Arsenal? Arsenal has made him a household name. However, they don't have the loyalty to the club that made them what they are today. After one big year, they decide to leave. I accept that they are leaving for money and that is their right. If they want to get paid and that is more important to them than being loyal then that's fine, it's their decision. I just disagree with it.

Both Flamini and Hleb are replaceable. Flamini will be harder but still doable. Now if we were to lose Cesc, that would be devastating to everyone involved with Arsenal. Cesc is the face of Arsenal. He might not be that superstar that Arsenal need in their lineup, but he's the face.

I do believe Arsenal needs that one superstar that everyone associates with the club. Like when someone mentions Liverpool, the first player that pops into your head is Gerrard. When someone mentions United, the first player that pops up is Ronaldo. Unfortunately, Arsenal doesn't have that player since Henry left. Cesc is the closest to that right now, and if he is to leave, it would be a big blow.

I think Arsenal are the victim of their own arrogance. For years they have thought they are this bastion of amazing football, maybe they thought they would be immune to modern footballs curse, $$$$$$$.

Now they have a midfielder they badly need walking for nothing, another being tempted back home, another threatening to buy out his contract in order to leave, and a striker using all of this to extort a higher wage than hes worth. (if you believe the rumours)

Surely someone at the club should have seen this coming? You cant rely on Wengers brilliance forever in keeping this team competing with the other big 3 clubs in England, for a team with the aspirations of Arsenal there comes a point where their monetary tightness will limit them to mediocrity. Which I think has been shown by their last 3 trophyless seasons after such a rich period for the club in that manner and happened to coincide with the advent of really big spending by their rivals.

well.. flamini's one of the few good players in the Gunners team.. he'll be missed and the one who made him leave unintentionally would be wenger who doesn't want to compromise with some pounds..

as for others.. i think most are probably giving wenger another chance for winning cups in the next season.. if they still encounter the same problem.. being hopelessly wiped out of any cups championships.. then they should be giving signs to leave for better clubs which win cups.. lol..

i'm curious as to how you see Flamini as being one of the "few good players" at Arsenal? i dont see how a team can finish 3rd in the premiership by just having a few good players i'm not trying to cause an argument and i'm not looking for a sarcastic reply, i'd genuinely like to know why you think this.

I dont think Arsenal fans should be worried, aslong as Wenger brings in some quality players to replace the ones they have and may well loose and also to strengthen weaker areas.

I would tend to agree with what J-Axe and Jacpot Jac are saying.

Panic? Not on your nelly. No player is bigger than the club - we all saw how 'horribly wrong' it all went and how Arsenal crash landed into the lower half of the table when Henry left.

It didn't happen did it.

For obvious reasons I would love to see Arsenal plummet, but Wenger is wiser than that.
But if Wenger did leave, I would be interested to see what would happen then but there isn't really any genuine indication that may happen anytime soon.

i mean.. few good players in my list for Gunners team.. i've got my own list and the number's decreasing match after match though.. and of course there're few bad players too as well..

i'd even rather rate flamini a bit higher than adebayor.. but then they're playing in different positions.. so it's not really allowed.. he's been playing decent this season and it's too bad he moved to milan.. as i don't really fancy serie a.. would've been better if it's a la liga club..

as for your third position.. i truly never expect it.. your team's always been our real rival and i just don't understand why we're also having even points with Chelsea now.. football's magic..

ahh i see what you mean, thats cool.

and i agree with you on the flamini/adebayor thing even though they're at different positions. although Adey has scored a lot of goals, i still think that Flamini had a much more impressive season for Arsenal.

indeed, thats the wonder of football!

I think the Flamini exit has been looked into too much. He had one great season and expected more from his contract. He was almost out the door last summer and supposedly his love for the Club made him stay - it was worse last season as Gilberto had him benched and guys like Diaby and Denílson were getting just the same amount of chances.

I just think he's stayed this season to prove to Wenger that he should have been given a bigger chance and shouldn't have been benched by the likes of Gilberto. It's a pity because of the personal problems of Flamini we have lost a great player - but if there's that history and personal disagreements, and perhaps a lot of self-delusion on Flamini's part then you can't expect any player to stay completely loyal. Also it's not as if Milan are a step down in anyway.

I agree that Flamini was superb for us and we all loved him for his performances and efforts, so in that case it's a big blow to lose him. But we also lost great players, better players than Flamini, to other Clubs (including rival Clubs) and coped without them as I pointed out in my earlier post.

It's more worrying [as I said earlier] that footballers like Flamini expect massive wages based on one great season. So many players can put in a great season and flop the next - there's no reason for Arsenal to change the policies and terms of agreement because Flamini says so. So many players at that level do boss their Clubs around and gain ridiculous amounts. I'm glad that Arsenal aren't doing that. If we lose a player to a 'lack of wage' or a less than good enough contract, then we don't need them - we need players who will fight for the Club on a fair & somewhat realistic wage.

Ashley Cole is the best example of something like this. We won nothing and suddenly our star, arguably, World-class International homegrown youth product leaves the Club to join a rival Club in the same City because he had personal disagreements with Arsenal in terms of money. There was a bad taste in Cole's mouth always because he felt left out of the spotlight when guys like Henry, Pirès and Vieira were getting all the attention and more money. It's similar with Flamini who had a bad taste in his gob after being benched time & time again last season and/or played out of position and even at times benched behind a relative newbie with less experience!

I can understand that because when it was happening I was cursing at Wenger for misusing Flamini.

But overall it's no big worry. If it was somebody of the calibre of Cesc, van Persie or Touré then I'd start getting worried unless there was perfectly good reason.

I think Flamini makes a mistake, he should wait one or two years. May be it will work in Milan but i remenber Ibrahim Ba who left Bordeaux too soon after only one season to go to Milan. When he was in Bordeaux and the first year in Milan he had few selections with France, it was before the WC 1998. After we didn't know what happen but i didn't see him playing often for Milan in the european cups.

Wiltord took the place of Ibrahim Ba but he stayed 3 years in Bordeaux before to go Arsenal and it worked, he had 92 selections with France. And after he came back to play for Lyon.

The main problem with these players leaving is the fact that Arsenal made great improvements this season ,more than anyone thought they would.The chemistry in the team developed and positions and information was gained by Wenger. Now Flamini's left Arsenal will have to rebuild that chemistry with a player who didn't play as much last season in his position.It's like every 1 step further Arsenal progress they take two steps back.It's quite obvious that Flamini played out of his skin this season because he would be in the shop window at the end of it.