Reports are emerging from France, and have been confirmed by the clubs official website, that Samir Nasri has fractured his fibula in pre-season training and will be out of action for three months.

This comes as a blow to the Gunners as the French international had cemented himself as a key player for Arsenal, and will miss the opening months of the Premier League campaign.

The 22 year-old was reportedly crying in pain as he was taken to a nearby hospital in the Hartberg region of Austria by two of the club's medical staff.

Arsenal are due to face Austrian side SC Columbia Floridsdorf this evening in their second warm up game of the week.

Arsenal's quest to remain a competitive outfit in the Premier League's top four could be made more laborious as they will be unable to fund any further incomings unless they continue to sell, so opines Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, who has stated that Arsene Wenger "doesn't have any money" to spend.

Ferguson explained to The Telegraph, "Arsenal have got the biggest test to be where they want to be.

"I know that Arsene doesn't have any money. I think that selling [Emmanuel] Adebayor... well, whether he can use that money is another question.

"There seems to be evidence that he can't use the money. I don't know. I think they're struggling cash-wise. It's a big test for Arsenal."
Such a notion is given more credence when one examines the nature of the Frenchman's transfer policy thus far. Wenger bought Ajax captain Thomas Vermaelen but has sold key striker Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City for £25 million.

Prior to the opening of the summer window, Wenger affirmed that the team would need two or three experienced recruits, but he has since intimated that the current crop are strong enough.

"The message is to trust the players that we have," he explained to the club's official website. "This is a very big season for us but I believe that we are in a very strong position.

"I feel we have a big enough squad to deal with the targets that we have."

Nicklas Bendtner, Aaron Ramsey and Robin van Persie all bagged braces today as Arsenal continued their pre-season preparations with an easy victory over Austrian amateur side SC Columbia, who had no professionals in their line-up.

The Gunners won 7-1, and had actually gone behind in the 36th minute, when goalkeeper Manuel Almunia dithered over a clearance following a Mikael Silvestre back pass, and Partick Lehner slid in at his feet to score from six yards out.

However, the lead lasted for only 45 seconds, as Abou Diaby won the ball on the by-line and squared it for Bendtner to net his first of the evening. Five minutes later Ramsey had put Arsenal into the lead with a 20-yard strike, and the Welshman combined with Bendtner again a minute before the interval to create a straightforward chance which the Dane converted.

Gunners manager Arsene Wenger experimented in his line-up, with Phillipe Senderos appearing in an unfamiliar defensive midfield role, but it did not stop his side from adding to their lead in a game that only got easier despite a raft of substitutions.

Van Persie grabbed his first on 56 minutes, converting a penalty after an Armand Traore cross had been handled, and his second followed on 73 minutes when he powered a header into the net following a well-judged cross from Bacary Sagna.

Two more goals followed from set-pieces, with William Gallas netting from six yards after Senderos had headed a van Persie free-kick back into the middle, and Ramsey completed the rout with a drive from 12 yards, after Denilson's corner was only half cleared.

A record attendance of 6,900 at the Schwarzlackenau Stadium enjoyed the game, with the scoreline failing to dampen the enthusiasm of a lively crowd boosted by the presence of a small but vocal Arsenal contingent.

SC Columbia: Gerhard Taschwer, Mario Handl, Michael Urban, Dominique Lehner, Thomas Pollack, Roman Horvath, Alexander Frimmel, Thomas Potlatnik, Roman Flandorfer, Julius Simon, Patrick Lehner

Arsenal:Manuel Almunia, Emmanuel Eboue, Mikael Silvestre, Thomas Vermaelen, Johan Djourou, Jack Wilshere, Denilson, Abou Diaby, Aaron Ramsey, Andrey Arshavin, Nicklas Bendtner

Second half subs: William Gallas, Kolo Toure Bacary Sagna, Philippe Senderos, Alex Song, Armand Traore, Robin Van Persie, Wojciech Szczesny

Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp has gone directly to Arsenal to offer Roman Pavlyuchenko, who has purchased a house near London following his £13.8 million move from Spartak Moscow last summer. The Russian international is out of favour at White Hart Lane and may seek a switch to the Emirates.

Pavlyuchenko has been linked with several clubs over the past few weeks, including Stuttgart, Villarreal and Besiktas. The 27-year-old striker may favour a move across north London, where Arsene Wenger is short on attacking options after the sale of Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City earlier this week.

Wenger also reportedly remains interested in Bordeaux's Marouane Chamakh, Hoffenheim's Demba Ba and Newcastle United's Obafemi Martins, while Toulouse striker Andre-Pierre Gignac has emerged as a prime target.

Redknapp continues to search for firepower with the rumoured departure of fellow Spurs forward Darren Bent, and is reportedly keen to hijack Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's mooted move from Real Madrid to Stuttgart. Bayern Munich's 32-year-old Luca Toni is also thought to be on Redknapp's radar.

While Russian tabloid Tvoi Den claims Spurs boss Redknapp has directly approached Wenger for the striker, Roma are reportedly also monitoring Pavlyuchenko's situation. The player's representative, Viktor Kolar, has said, "I don't know anything. By reading the papers I learned that the club [Roma] would make a move for the player, but with regards to myself no one has made me aware of anything.

"I don't have any idea how they can write that Roman will be at Roma. I spoke to the management and I know that next year he will be part of a serious project.

"He still has many years on his contract and he intends to prove also in England how much he is worth."