Wenger pledges to retain prudent transfer policy

Wenger is prepared to spend heavily but insists that his decision to invest in youngsters a few years ago has reduced the need to go into the market to a minimum (AP)

Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger has hinted he will undertake no major transfer spending in the summer.

Wenger's cautious approach to the market in recent seasons has enabled him to build a squad that currently tops the Premier League, and he sees no reason to go on a spree in the close season even though the club will back him with cash.

The manager is determined to spend within his budget and will continue to place emphasis on the kind of continuity that is reaping rewards for the club. "I will keep faith [with the current players] because we have worked hard for what we have now," said Wenger.

"I have said many times, the real target of a manager is to find the balance with what comes in and what goes out and build a team with these restrictions. It is to do well with the funds available.

"We have money because we made money, and we made money because we made the right decisions. I believe a football team is not about buying and selling. It is about building, patience, working together and going through a growing process. Also, it is enjoyable now to see the team coming up slowly and see how well they can do."

Wenger is prepared to spend heavily but insists that his decision to invest in youngsters a few years ago has reduced the need to go into the market to a minimum.

"I would have to be completely convinced that it is right and not stupid for the future of the club," he said. "But I am in a position where I anticipated the years to come and I prepared for it."

Unlike Wenger, Manchester City manager Sven-Goran Eriksson will hand owner Thaksin Shinawatra a list of summer transfer targets when the owner returns to the club today.

The Swedish coach will get straight down to business with Thaksin, who has pleaded not guilty in Thailand's Supreme Court in one of two corruption cases being brought against him.

The court session came a day before he begins a month-long trip to England to attend to his duties with City – a trip that the court has already sanctioned.

He faces conflict of interest and malfeasance charges related to his wife's purchase of a prime piece of Bangkok real estate in 2003. Thaksin, who was ousted in September 2006 by a military coup, took control of City in the summer. He approved £50m worth of transfers but City have failed to build on a bright start to the campaign.

Eriksson is already looking to strengthen in the close season and said: "Dr Thaksin is most welcome, he has been away a long time. It will be nice to see him. I will have a meeting with him and his advisers and discuss next season. I am sure he has seen every game wherever he has been."