Arsène Wenger has made it clear that he expects to swap Alexis Sánchez for Manchester United’s Henrikh Mkhitaryan, as he suggested the loss of Arsenal’s star player may not be as painful as it was in 2012 when Robin van Persie left for Old Trafford.

The Arsenal manager said Sánchez’s transfer to United was likely to happen and quickly, too – possibly in the next 24 to 48 hours. He also spoke candidly on Mkhitaryan, saying it was his understanding that the attacking midfielder would move in the opposite direction.

Arsenal would still be in the market for another attacking player and they retain a strong interest in Borussia Dortmund’s Pierre‑Emerick Aubameyang. But Wenger appeared to rule out a move for the Bordeaux winger Malcom. “I don’t think we are close to doing that,” he said.

On Sánchez, Wenger said: “I’ve worked on transfers for 30 years, so it is likely to happen. But these kind of things are never guaranteed. It’s now in the next 24 to 48 hours that it will happen or not.”

Wenger did not sell Sánchez last August to Manchester City – after accepting a £60m offer from them – because he was unable to sign a replacement. This time, Mkhitaryan is set to smooth the deal.

Wenger was asked whether Mkhitaryan was primed to arrive as part of the Sánchez transfer. “It’s my understanding, yes,” he said. “The wages would not be a problem. This would be an exchange of players and I think one would replace the other. Are we still on the transfer market after that? Yes.”

The Arsenal hierarchy would love to take Aubameyang and they are convinced that Dortmund are ready to sell for €60m. The big question is whether they will do so now or in the summer. Dortmund are desperate to qualify for the Champions League and they would need to source a replacement for their top scorer if they decided to accept the money for him in January.

Wenger was unusually open on transfers and he talked about Aubameyang, including making complimentary remarks about his character. His willingness to address the subject went down badly at Dortmund.

“We think it is a lack of respect when you get involved with players who are playing for another team,” the Dortmund sporting director, Michael Zorc, said. “There is no contact with Arsenal. We can only assume that Arsène Wenger has enough to think about when it comes to the performances of his own players.”

Wenger did not rule out the use of Olivier Giroud as a makeweight in a move for Aubameyang. The German club were interested in the striker last summer and they also like Racing Club’s Lautaro Martínez. It was put to Wenger that if he were able to sign Aubameyang, he may not keep Giroud at Arsenal. “You started with an ‘if’,” he replied. “If can be many theories. At the moment, I cannot tell you much more.”

Van Persie’s departure for United hurt everybody at Arsenal and he compounded matters by inspiring his new club to the title in his first season. Wenger sees the Sánchez situation as being different, mainly because the Chilean was an international star when he joined Arsenal.

“We took Van Persie when he played in the reserve team at Feyenoord,” Wenger said. “And we made a long work with him. When you get them there to the level and, after, they leave – of course that is the most painful and, after that, they do well for the other club.

“I would say our fans know Alexis will not extend his contract and they have accepted that idea. And the fact it will not be one-way traffic, it will be other way traffic as well [with Mkhitaryan] – that makes the whole thing a bit smoother, maybe, a bit less disappointing.”