Arsène Wenger is close to raising £5m through the sales of Emmanuel Eboué to Galatasaray and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas to Ipswich Town as he enters what may be the defining week in the Cesc Fábregas saga. The Arsenal manager has identified the areas of his squad that need refreshing and Eboué, having been deemed surplus to requirements, is set to depart to Galatasaray for £4m.
The Ivorian is a popular member of the dressing room but Wenger appeared to lose patience with him towards the end of last season after he conceded a last-gasp penalty at home to Liverpool, which led to the concession of two vital points.
Eboué did not travel on the tour of east Asia, with Wenger citing a calf injury as the reason. But he was also left at home when they went to Germany last Friday to enable him to finalise his transfer. Wenger will move Emmanuel-Thomas, the 20-year-old reserve-team attacking talent, to Ipswich for £1m and he also hopes to sell Nicklas Bendtner and Manuel Almunia before the end of next month. Neither player travelled to Asia or Germany, with Bendtner having held talks with Borussia Dortmund. Almunia is of interest to Atlético Madrid, Malaga and Fenerbahce.
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