Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger demands that national associations must be made to pay compensation to clubs when they pick players for international tournaments.

Nigeria captain Kanu can miss up to six weeks of the Premier League season while away on international duty, while still getting six weeks' salary from Arsenal. "The situation is just not legally defensible," Wenger says to the Independent.

"The clubs don't want to pay any more when the players are on international duty and I can see a day coming when the countries have to pay them instead," he continued. "You can win or lose a championship by just one point and yet when you lose an important player for six weeks the club still has to pay him. It is surprising that such a situation exists in our world today."

While Kanu is away playing the African Nations' Cup, Arsenal plays Sunderland, Manchester United, Bradford and Liverpool in the Premier League, an FA Cup replay against Leicester and (hopefully) a fifth-round FA Cup tie away to Chelsea or Nottingham Forest.