Arsene Wenger has admitted that Thomas Lemar snubbed Arsenal on Deadline Day.
The Gunners had a £90million bid accepted by Monaco in the dying hours of the transfer window but failed to get a deal over the line.
Lemar's arrival would have allowed Alexis Sanchez to complete his transfer to Manchester City.
But as Arsenal could not secure his replacement, they did not let Sanchez leave.
Speaking on French TV on Friday evening, Wenger admitted that it was Lemar's decision to turn down the deal.
“The player has chosen to stay in Monaco,” Wenger told beIN Sports.
“You do not want to talk too much about it. You have to respect what happens on the negotiation side.
“I know we live in the era of transprency but at some stage, to respect everybody you have to not talk too much about that.
"You keep the player and make a financial sacrifice because what you want, at the end of the day, is to have a team who has a good potential and top quality.
"That means two things: Alexis Sanchez will go, like Mesut Ozil, in the final year of his contract or you think during the season you will find a way to extend the contract or at the end of the season the players go for free." Wenger said.
Lemar is believed to have wanted longer to decide on his future after only finding out about the deal at the last minute.
He represented France in their World Cup qualifier against the Netherlands - scoring twice - in the final hours of the transfer window.
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