The questions on Tuesday for Arsene Wenger were almost identical to six years ago, when he faced a similarly defining round of contract negotiations with his star players, but his expectation of a different outcome is clear.

For Robin van Persie, Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, it is easy now to look at Mesut Ozil, Hector Bellerin and Alexis Sanchez. Three key players who would challenge to start in just about any other team in the world, of whom two are moving towards the final year of their contract and one is sought after by their home-town club of Barcelona.

Wenger does not need any reminding of what happened previously. Fabregas returned to Catalonia and the economic reality of Van Persie and Nasri’s refusal to sign a new deal meant that they were also eventually sold before entering the last year of their contracts.