After more than a year fighting to keep Cesc Fabregas at Arsenal, manager Arsene Wenger no longer knows whether it is still in the Premier League club's interest to hold onto the Spain midfielder.
The Arsenal manager has been trying to rebuff advances from Barcelona for a second straight offseason, but acknowledged Friday that his captain is ''unsettled'' by the prospect of rejoining the club he left as a 16-year-old prospect.
Wenger only wants to keep hold of Fabregas if he is sure of his complete dedication to the team.
''He's in a moment where he thinks about it,'' Wenger said. ''It is a bit uncertain and I always said he is torn between two loves. There is the club where he was educated as a very young boy and the club where he has been educated from 16 onwards and he has been given an opportunity.
''I personally can understand that but we want to be certain of his complete commitment.''
Arsenal had been holding out for an offer from Barcelona so big it could effectively not be turned down.
Even with misgivings over Fabregas' focus, Wenger said that was the only logical way for the club to approach the situation. Otherwise, players would have total power to dictate the terms of their employment and contracts would be worthless.
''That would mean anybody who wants to leave you, you just have to let him go for any price,'' Wenger said. ''A good deal is where everybody is happy at the end.
''I have that responsibility to sell players at a decent price or I take money away from my club.''
Wenger said Fabregas will not be in the squad for the preseason Emirates Cup tournament the club was hosting at the weekend. Arsenal will play Boca Juniors on Saturday and meet the New York Red Bulls a day later.
Wenger said Arsenal had not set a deadline for Barcelona to return with a bigger offer for Fabregas, who is recovering from a hamstring problem. He said negotiations could continue until the final day of the European transfer window.
''He is coming back from an injury and he is not settled with us,'' Wenger said. ''There is only one deadline. It's on the 31st of August. There are players who are focused on the club. My energy, my focus goes on them. I cannot help the other situation because it does not depend only upon me. It depends upon the players and the other clubs.''
The situation is reminiscent of those surrounding midfielder Patrick Vieira and striker Thierry Henry in recent seasons, when commentators and fans predicted that Arsenal would collapse if it sold what was then its key player.
Henry, visiting Arsenal for a preseason tournament with the New York Red Bulls, refused to speculate on what his former teammate might do.
''I only know what I did, I know what I've done and I know what I will do,'' Henry said. ''Check out the history.''
Wenger said he had no concerns over the commitment of Samir Nasri, who has just one season left on his contract and has been linked with a transfer to Manchester United or Chelsea.
Wenger would not comment upon British newspaper reports that he was close to signing Valencia winger Juan Mata and Everton defender Phil Jagielka, but said Arsenal would likely make its move in the market soon.
''Sooner rather than later,'' Wenger said. ''At the moment you have two categories of movement: one from zero to 10 million (pounds) and one from 30 to 50 million. And we are in between.''
But Wenger insisted he was not jealous of the money spent on high-profile signings by Manchester City, pointing out that it was effectively money borrowed from the club's wealthy Arab owners.
''Our industry is, all over Europe, in a very bad situation and the clubs that live on the money they generate don't buy,'' Wenger said. ''The only clubs who buy at the moment in Europe are the clubs who buy with money that is not generated by our industry.
''There are two categories of club: those that travel with sweat and those who travel with petrol. We are one of those who travel with sweat.''
