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ESPN staff 7y

Alexis Sanchez, Diego Costa in 'different situation' - Arsene Wenger

Arsene Wenger has said again that Alexis Sanchez will remain an Arsenal player for the season and downplayed any comparisons between the Chile international and Chelsea's Diego Costa.

Sanchez, 28, is in the final year of his contract and has been linked with a move away from the Emirates in search of Champions League football. Costa, on the other hand, is in limbo with Chelsea boss Antonio Conte saying the striker is not part of his plans for the upcoming season with the player pushing for a return to Atletico Madrid.

Asked if he would compare the status of the two after Sanchez was held out of Friday's Premier League season opening win against Leicester City, Wenger told BeIn Sports: "Of course [Sanchez will stay]. [The Costa scenario] is a little bit of a different situation.

"We always wanted to keep Sanchez and we always hope -- even now -- that we can extend the contract of Sanchez, [Alex Oxlade-] Chamberlain and [Mesut] Ozil, so it's difficult for me to analyse the Chelsea situation with Costa."

Costa's situation is a bit more complicated, with the Spain international reportedly having been fined two weeks' wages for failing to return to training as a dispute over his future continues.

The former Atleti striker, who remains in his home town of Lagarto in Brazil, claimed in an interview with with the Daily Mail on Sunday that Chelsea are treating him "like a criminal" and that he has lost all personal respect for Conte over the Italian's handling of the situation.

Sources at Chelsea told ESPN FC on Monday that four conditions have been set out for Costa to resolve the current stand-off. The first is that he return to England, the second that he return to training, the third that he get himself match fit and the fourth that he make himself available for selection.

From Wenger's standpoint, the bottom line comes down to one simple thing: what is the current status of a player's contract.

"It looks unusual to the media sometimes that clubs want contracts to be respected," Wenger said. "For me, it looks logical. I am amazed that you are amazed. It looks normal.

"If I sign a contract, I respect it. Of course, if a club releases me, it is normal that I can go somewhere else, but I know that, when I sign for two years with Arsenal, Arsenal have that contract and I have to respect it."

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