Speculation surrounding the long term future of Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger simply refuses to die down and there have been varying reports from many media outlets regarding whether or not the Frenchman will continue his reign at the Emirates Stadium beyond the end of the current campaign.

Due to the uncertainty, a number of high profile managers have already been mentioned as potential replacements for Wenger and Juventus boss Max Allegri is a name that has been in the forefront in many newspapers.

Now in an exclusive from the Daily Express, revelations can be made that Arsenal have already begun their pursuit to lure Allegri to North London by beginning negotiations with the Italian manager and although an agreement has not been reached, talks are allegedly at an advanced stage.

According to reports from the Daily Telegraph, under pressure Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has rejected a mindboggling £30 million-per-year offer from the Chinese Super League.

Wenger is currently nearing the end of his contract at Arsenal and as a result, an unnamed Chinese club was reportedly prepared to splash the cash in order to lure the veteran manager to the Far-East.

However, the 67-year-old has not been tempted by the contract and is currently mulling over whether to extend his stay at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke has tabled a two-year contract extension offer to Wenger, which includes a 25 per cent increase from around £8m-a-year to around £10m-a-year and the Gunners chief is desperate for the Frenchman to accept the new terms.

Arsenal fans will surely not be happy with the improved contract handed to Wenger after perceived failures in the Premier League title race and the Champions League in recent years but it is not clear if the veteran boss will accept the offer from the Gunners as he is clearly not making his future decision on the basis of financial gains after rejecting China.

Superstars Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are both entering the final year of their respective deals at Arsenal and there is understandably a sense of worry among the supporters about the two players’ long term future at the Emirates, as the club hierarchy seem to be reluctant on matching the duo’s wage demands.

Now Arsenal chief Sir Chips Keswick has provided an update to the contractual situation regarding both Sanchez and Ozil, and has indirectly stated that the club will not be held ransom by extortionate salary requests from any player no matter how important.

Sir Chips said, "We have continued to invest in the region of key players. Francis Coquelin, Hector Bellerin, Laurent Koscielny and Olivier Giroud have all signed new contracts, while we have taken up options to extend the contracts of Per Mertesacker and Santi Cazorla.

"Further work is required in the area of contract renewals and we will continue to invest rationally in our squad retention. As expected, increased Premier League broadcasting revenues have had a direct impact on player costs both in terms of transfer prices and player wage demands.

"While these are market forces that have contributed directly over time to the success of the Premier League, I would sound a note of caution in light of the very material contractual commitments to future wages that clubs are taking on."

Arsenal have endured a number of injury setbacks over the past few weeks but the Gunners will only make a return to action next weekend, when they square off against Liverpool at Anfield, and the mini rest will certainly prove to be a blessing in disguise for the North London side in terms of the overall fitness of the squad.

Both Laurent Koscielny and Alex Iwobi had to be forced off during Arsenal’s 5-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League last week but it is expected that the two players will be fit in time to feature against Liverpool.

As for Mohamed Elneny, who suffered an injury in the FA Cup clash against Sutton on Monday, the Egyptian midfielder will have a scan on his damaged ankle and manager Arsene Wenger will surely hope that the results are positive, especially with Santi Cazorla out for the rest of the season.

Aaron Ramsey is another player on the recovery trail for Arsenal following a calf injury sustained last month and the London Evening Standard claim that the Welshman is optimistic of returning to full fitness ahead of the Gunners’ FA Cup Quarter final clash against Lincoln City.

Arsenal suffer Cazorla and Elneny injury blows

Santi Cazorla has been out of action since October due to an ankle injury and the midfielder was initially expected to be out for just a couple of weeks due to the problem.

Unfortunately, Cazorla’s situation has not improved despite numerous surgeries over the past few months and now in a huge blow for the Gunners, the Daily Mirror have revealed that the 32-year-old midfielder will be ruled out for the rest of the current campaign.

Given Cazorla’s importance both on and off the pitch for Arsenal, his continued absence through injury will surely affect the Gunners in a negative fashion and it remains to be seen as to whether the veteran can return to his best if and when he regains full fitness.

In addition to Cazorla, another midfield player in Mohamed Elneny has also suffered an ankle injury (as reported by Football.London) and although the Egyptian’s situation is not as bad as the Spaniard, he looks set to be ruled out for the upcoming encounters against Liverpool and Bayern Munich over the next two weeks.