Arsene Wenger has delivered a warning to disgruntled midfielder Lassana Diarra that he would be making a big mistake to walk out of Arsenal's 'paradise'.
Diarra complained after he was omitted from the 16 to play Chelsea on December 16 and told a French newspaper how he had been a victim of broken promises and was ready to leave the club he joined only four months ago.
The 22-year-old, who pushed for a move from Chelsea in the summer, has started only four games in the Barclays Premier League since his £2million transfer across London but has been told to grow up and fight for his place like a man.
"We are not in a kindergarten here," said Wenger. "We are in a job for men. You cannot be at our level, one of the biggest clubs in the world, paid at a fantastic level and have no competition.
"Tell me one club of our size in the world who give a chance to the young players like we do. There are none. At our club young players are in paradise. Normally you wait until 26 or 27 to get a chance in a big club. You go to Real Madrid, you go to Milan, where do the young players play?"
Despite this policy, there is a growing list of unhappy players at the Emirates Stadium, led by goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, who will be allowed to leave next month.
Gilberto Silva and Abou Diaby are also dissatisfied with their roles on the fringes.
Wenger added: "I cannot understand when people are surprised there is competition in a big club. You leave one big club for another and you have another manager who, at the end of the week, will choose 11 players. Fifteen will have to deal with the situation of not being played. Why does that raise questions? It is part of our job.
"If you have a period for two or three months with the team doing well and you have a player doing well in front of you, that's bad luck.
"It is a job for strong people and those who stay strong always come out. When they are at a club lower in the League they want to join a bigger club. You cannot have everything."
Diarra is in the squad for today's game at Everton and Wenger insists his attitude has been "100 per cent professional" in training.
He has attracted interest from Lyon and Paris St-Germain but may want to discuss his situation with Mathieu Flamini before deciding his future.
Flamini was seeking a transfer 12 months ago, speaking in the French media about his unhappiness, but was eventually persuaded to stay and has become a mainstay of Arsenal's midfield this season.
Wenger said: "Diarra has the talent to be in a big club. That's where his place is. It's as simple as that. He wants to play, he's unhappy not to play. I can understand that. But you have to assess yourself and stay where you belong. He belongs to a big club. For the moment he doesn't play but if he continues to fight he will play.
"When you sign a contract, no one puts a gun to your head. Nobody forced me to sign. I'm 58, I never went to see somebody after I signed to say: 'I'm having a difficult patch at the moment, I want to go'."
Lehmann's position is totally different. At 38, he will not be expected to fight for his place. Borussia Dortmund are interested and the Germany international will be allowed to make up his own mind.
