There could be another reason. A day before, Robin van Persie had issued a stark warning to Arsenal: that they could lose all their star players if they do not start paying them more.

'I think that Arsenal should go to a higher level of salary,' he said.

Even the £12.5 million (S$33.5 million) signing of Samir Nasir, Marseille's attacking midfielder, who is expected to make a major impact at Euro 2008 with France, has failed to appease van Persie or Hleb, who is expected to leave for Barcelona.

All that is left is for the Spanish giants to make a £12 million offer.

Said the 27-year-old Belarussian: 'To win a title is also the most important thing for me. The clock is ticking but it is simply not happening. It is very difficult.

'In this year I thought that I would win two titles, but as I said everything went wrong.

'I do not know what happened. Suddenly everything was gone. I am obviously not satisfied.'

Clearly, the loss of Mathieu Flamini to AC Milan still rankles, after manager Arsene Wenger refused to break the club's wage structure for the French international.

Arsenal offered the midfielder, one of the club's few shining lights in a disappointing season, half the £50,000 a week he now gets from the Italian giants.

And it has been reported that striker Emmanuel Adebayor is demanding £80,000 to stay on. He is currently paid £35,000 a week.

Fears remain that club icon Cesc Fabregas could also leave for the same reason.

Top Chelsea and Manchester United stars get £130,000 a week, while Arsenal's top earner, William Gallas, is paid only £80,000.

Van Persie said: 'If you want to keep the group together, you have to keep them happy.

'If you are 27 or 28, I can understand that you would make the decision to go elsewhere, if you can earn three or four times more.

'If that sort of money was also paid at Arsenal, I'm sure that person would stay.'

His comments came just a day after the Gunners' finance director insisted that the club would not break their strict wage structure, suggesting that the long-term implications outweigh the short-term benefits.

The overwhelming belief is that Flamini left Arsenal because of money, and that Hleb may be leaving for the same reason, after rejecting an extension to his contract.

Van Persie believes this trend will continue, unless Arsenal are prepared to stop 'nickel and diming', reported The Guardian.

Not surprisingly, the 24-year-old is himself in negotiations to extend his current deal, which lasts till 2011.

He has scored only nine goals in 23 appearances this season, after suffering a knee injury while on international duty for the Netherlands.

'I think of myself as an Arsenal man. But Arsenal should also try to make sure that we all grow together,' he said.