Wenger willing to splash the cash on a striker

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger insists he is prepared to spend big to land a striker providing they meet four criteria.

The Gunners boss is in the market for another centre-forward in the transfer window and a bid for Lyon striker Alexandre Lacazette has already been rejected.

A deal for Lacazette is reportedly still in the pipeline, although Arsenal are thought to be exploring other options as well.

Wenger's transfer policy has been heavily criticised in the past, but the Frenchman has defended his stance by saying he will not spend for the sake of it.

But Wenger, speaking after Arsenal's 8-0 battering of Viking on Friday, has no problem digging deep into the coffers for the right player.

"It's not the prices, it's the players. The money is never a problem if you have to pay what is requested," he said.

"The price of a player is down to four ingredients; one is the talent, two is his age, three is how much you expect him to improve your team, and four is his resale value.

"If he ticks all four boxes then the price is not that important. You have to find the player.

"At the moment I'm focused on the players we have. We didn't have Aaron Ramsey, Granit Xhaka and Alexis Sanchez, who will play [against Manchester City in Gothenburg] on Sunday. We still have Mesut Ozil at home, and Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny too.

"We also have young players who came on and did well. We do not have to panic but we are on alert in the transfer market so that we can make the right move when the opportunity comes up."