Arsène Wenger locked the Arsenal exit door yesterday after a week in which Mathieu Flamini agreed to join AC Milan, Alexander Hleb's agent said that his client was intent on moving to Inter Milan and reports suggested that Emmanuel Adebayor would consider leaving unless he received a pay increase.

Reasserting his authority amid fears of a player exodus, Wenger said that “98 per cent” of his squad would stay and only Flamini and Jens Lehmann, both out of contract, would depart. “For me nobody goes, simple as that,” the Arsenal manager said. Adebayor yesterday dismissed the rumours about his future as “rubbish”.

Wenger implied that Hleb's desire for a transfer is down to money, with Arsenal refusing to break a wage structure that pays lower rates than other top European clubs. “You know what unhappiness is linked with usually,” he said. “It looks that wages that were good last year are not good any more.”

He regretted the manner of Flamini's departure. “If you say, 'No, I want to go somewhere', that is OK,” Wenger said. “But you cannot say, 'I want to stay, but I go.' There is no bitterness. This club has a history of being built by people of values. I'm not sure that in the history of Milan you'll find the same values.”

Extensive retail therapy is not on Wenger's agenda. “Maybe what we need is two or three players,” he said. “There is plenty of demand for players who want to join us.”

He believes that he does not need to buy to replace the France midfield player. “Plenty of players can play for Flamini,” he said. “Abou Diaby, Denilson, Gilberto Silva, Alexandre Song.”

His team face Sunderland tomorrow still without Tomas Rosicky. The Czech Republic captain's knee injury will cause him to miss the European Championship.

Roy Keane will discuss his transfer targets with Sunderland directors next week, but the manager has no intention of turning the heads of supporters for the sake of it. “The priority will be getting players who can take us to the next level, not people with fancy names or long hair,” he said.

Keane confirmed that the club will pursue players from “these islands” as a priority. “We could do with a smaller squad, but a lot more quality. I'm hoping to spend good money but on far fewer players,” he said.