Arsenal kit launch causes panic over Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil... for a few minutes

PUMA caused a stir among Arsenal fans after unveiling images of the new Gunners kit for the 2017-18 season - ones that did not include either Alexis Sanchez or Mesut Ozil.

Both Sanchez and Ozil have just one year remaining on their respective contracts, with speculation over potential moves away from the Emirates Stadium casting a shadow over their 2016-17 campaigns and this summer's transfer plans.

Official kit releases now offer fans the opportunity to frantically speculate upon who and who is not part of their manager's plans, with the omission of the Arsenal pair fuelling that sort of carry on when PUMA's first tweet dropped at 09.00 [BST] on Wednesday morning [21 June].

Initial replies frantically asked where Ozil and Sanchez were, but, on closer inspection, it became clear the only Arsenal players to feature in the promotional image were Olivier Giroud, Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal – all Puma clients.

The German sportswear giant are understandably not in the business of promoting athletes who are represented by their rivals, which would explain why Ozil and Sanchez – represented by Adidas and Nike respectively – did not make their cut.

Arsenal attempted to clear things up just three minutes later by releasing their own promotional images featuring the two players everyone had been asking about.

Looking closely at Wednesday's kit launch, Arsenal may have been making a statement over those players who remain heavily linked with a summer exit. Hector Bellerin, who has been the subject of intense speculation linking him with a return to Barcelona and Olivier Giroud, linked with a move to West Ham United amid his own concerns over a lack of first-team opportunities, both feature front and centre.

Sanchez could remain in the Premier League with Manchester City credited with a keen interest – although Chile teammate Arturo Vidal seems determined to ensure he joins him at Bayern Munich.