The Frenchman remains a master operator in the transfer market and his success in developing young talent is legendary, but it appears he is now ready to sign arguably his first well-established player since William Gallas in 2006 - with reports naming the likes of Gareth Barry and Torsten Frings as potential targets.

"We lost players with experience of course," said Wenger following his side's 2-1 win over Barnet at Underhill on Saturday.

"But we can still bring in players with experience and don't forget that last year, since the first of January, Van Persie has missed nearly six months, Rosicky has missed four or five months and Eduardo has missed four or five months, they will all be back."

When asked by setantasports.com whether Gunners fans can expect to see a more mature player arriving at Emirates Stadium, Wenger replied: "What do you call old? Yes 25 (and over) is very old at Arsenal! We can get one player with experience, yes."