Football
Kevin Palmer 10y

Wenger coy over Sami Khedira link

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has refused to be drawn on reports that he has made enquiries to sign Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira.

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Wenger has been persistently linked with a move for the Germany World Cup winner this summer, but he denied that Arsenal have made a formal bid for Khedira when pressed on the subject by reporters following his side's 5-1 Emirates Cup win against Benfica.

"What is enquire for you?" he responded. "I don't know. If I read the newspapers, he is available."

Wenger's comments will fuel rumours that he is keen to sign Khedira this summer, but he stated in an earlier interview following the Benfica game that defenders were his priority in the final few weeks of this transfer window.

After saying on Friday that Belgian centre-back Thomas Vermaelen may leave the club amid continued links with a move to Manchester United, Wenger hinted on Saturday that his priority will be on signing defenders after seeing his side beat Benfica 5-1 in their opening Emirates Cup match.

"Who's next? I don't know," Wenger told BT Sport when asked about possible new arrivals at Arsenal. "There could still be one signing, maximum of two. If a good opportunity comes up we might still do it, but at the moment we are not close to signing anybody.

"I'm very happy with the squad I have available at the moment, but we might be a little bit short maybe at the back."

Wenger reserved praise for his back-up striker Yaya Sanogo, who scored four goals in a win against Benfica that also included an Emirates Stadium debut for summer signing Alexis Sanchez.

"We had a great first half. It was a good opportunity to see them and I like the way we played together," Wenger said. "With Sanogo, you could see that it was on his mind that he couldn't score the first goal and once he scored once, he scored four. It's good for him to find that confidence that he can score goals because he a great goal scoring record.

"The new signings whenever they have a big name are always welcome. The crowd like that. [Sanchez] is not fit yet, but once he is fit he will be a dangerous player."

Calum Chambers also made his Emirates Stadium debut in an Arsenal shirt and the Southampton graduate who moved to the Gunners in a 16 million-pound deal last month clearly relished his first game for his new club.

"It was amazing. To play in front of such a big crowd and the quality of players I'm playing with now is a great achievement," Chambers said. "The quality of players in the team is immense. To play with such amazing players is an honour. This club is destined for great things. It has a great history an I think we can do well this season."

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