The Arsenal manager's comments are certain not only to spark speculation about which specific players he was referring to but also to reignite the debate about drug-testing in football.
Wenger, who is credited with introducing a far more scientific approach to training and diet into English football since joining Arsenal in 1996, is the first high-profile coach in this country to publicly question his own players' pasts.
Arsenal routinely monitor all aspects of players' health and fitness, including blood tests. Wenger did not name any individuals nor say when the high counts occurred.
A high red-blood-cell count is often regarded as a symptom of the use of Erythropoietin (EPO), a banned drug that increases the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood.
EPO abuse was widespread in the Tour de France and it is widely accepted to have spread into numerous sports where stamina levels are a key factor in performance.
No footballer in Britain has ever tested positive for EPO, but it is rarely checked for.
Of the 1,324 drugs-test samples collected by UK Sport for the Football Association in the year between 1 April 2003 and 31 March this year, not one was tested for EPO.
A spokesman for UK Sport confirmed that the extra cost of testing for EPO, as opposed to "common" performanceenhancing or recreational drugs, was "significant".
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