5 things Arsene Wenger said ahead of Liverpool clash

Ahead of Arsenal's English Premier League clash against Liverpool on Monday, August 22, Arsene  Wenger faced the media today to give an update about is his team.

He spoke on a range of topics surrounding his team from injuries to transfer rumours and other events.

These are five things he said at the press conference.

I. Injury update

Wenger said Arsenal have no new injury from their win over .

On "[Playing before the international break] is a bit too optimistic, it’s too early to think he would be playing for England.

"After the international break he has a chance, but before the international break he has no chance.

2.  Alexis Sanchez is nearing full fitness

Wenger said forward Sanchez is nearing full fitness.

"It’s surprising because when he has not got the basic fitness required, he has the mental resources to dig deep and be combative to fight. He also has the talent," Wenger said.

3. Arsenal not close to any signing

With reports of Karim Benzema becoming intense, Wenger has revealed that Arsenal is ot close to any signing.

4. Shortage of No 9s in the world

Many believe that Arsenal need to sign a striker to be able to win the English Premier League but Wenger says the is a shortage of good strikers in the world.

"There’s a shortage in the world. It confirms what I just said, that there’s a difference between financial power nowadays and the availability of top-class players," Wenger said.

5. Pedro to Chelsea move surprising

Wenger says like many others that he is surprised Pedro moved to .

Wenger had this to say: "It was a surprise to me because I thought he was landing at Manchester but he finally landed in London. The story was out for such a long time that I thought he was going to go to Manchester, but then suddenly in 24 hours [he joined Chelsea]. We’ve seen that before on the transfer market. I don’t know what happened exactly.

Watch highlights of Arsenal's defeat to West Ham, below: