Arsene Wenger is not worried about ruffling feathers at Anfield before his team's game there tomorrow. The Arsenal manager yesterday said he believed that the Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard could well end up becoming a Chelsea player.

Gerrard turned down a move to Stamford Bridge last summer, but Wenger said: "You know Chelsea will sooner or later take who they want, so that means it might only be a temporary decision."

It is inconceivable that Gerrard will leave Liverpool in January but he could seek a transfer at the end of the season if he is not satisfied with the progress being made at Anfield. Real Madrid have also expressed interest.

Wenger knows Arsenal have a chance to force Liverpool further out of the Premiership title race. "They are having a patch when certainly they are not at their best," he said.

The Arsenal manager has called on Edu to decide his future in the next month. The midfielder's contract expires next summer and Wenger will look for a replacement in January if he has still not signed.

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has admitted that he was close to signing Jose Antonio Reyes from Sevilla as manager of Valencia, only for Arsenal to gazump him with their bid of an initial £10.5m.

Meanwhile, Liverpool remain committed to moving to their own purpose-built stadium and will not contemplate a groundshare with Everton, despite being asked to attend a meeting with the sports minister Richard Caborn to discuss the issue.