Arsene Wenger: I will never abandon Arsenal's commitment to youth development

Arsene Wenger today vowed never to abandon his determination to put youth development at the heart of Arsenal, even though the club have radically expanded their transfer budget to compete for the title.

The Frenchman added he would continue to fight the club’s Premier League rivals over financial fair play so his successor would inherit a strong, stable club.

The signings of Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez and now Petr Cech have seen a radical shift by Wenger but he insisted these acquisitions would be the exceptions.

“We are buying the exceptional players so we can compete today but that will not be the basis of our policy,” he said. “We want to combine stronger financial resources with faith in our philosophy. That means that we will continue to give chances to young players and build the team from inside our club.”

The deal for Cech has moved Wojciech Szczesny down the pecking order and the Pole has agreed to join Roma on a season-long loan.

Wenger believes Cech’s arrival from Chelsea will be key in the season ahead. “What he does is to strengthen belief in the team,” he said. “When you sit in the dressing room and look around you, you need people who give you confidence. Always.”

Wenger, who said he had discussed retirement with Sir Alex Ferguson but was not ready to join him on the sidelines, added that Manchester United had abandoned the Scot’s philosophy of building a team from within. He said: “They have created huge financial resources and today there is no patience for them to continue to do what they did.”