Arsene Wegner went on the defensive on Thursday as he dismissed reports surrounding Arsenal as “fake news.”

The under-fire Arsenal manager angrily refused to discuss the behaviour of a small group of fans who have staged protests calling for him to resign before their last home games against Bayern Munich and Lincoln. And he looked totally bemused when moved to defend the future of his long-time right-hand man Boro Primorac.

Wenger has worked alongside the Bosnian-Croat since 1994 and he denied reports Primorac will leave Arsenal before he does, with Turkish side Konyaspor reportedly keen to make him their next manager.

Wenger insisted: “That’s a complete invention. You say anything these days and everybody takes it without checking any information.

“Everybody just takes and takes it and makes it a a subject. It’s not serious. Fake news.”

The French coach was then asked if he was aware of Barcelona's continued interest in re-signing their former youth player Hector Bellerin, who has developed into a senior Spain international under Wenger's management.

Arsenal might struggle to hold on to players such as Alexis Sanchez this summer, but there is no way Wenger will allow one of the best young defenders in Europe to slip away so easily.