Alan Shearer: RVP may take my record – but Arsenal must not lose him

The Arsenal boss has left Van Persie out of some games to give him a rest and taken him off in quite a few others to ensure the demands of a long season are not too great for him.

If you ask me what his valuation is in the current market, that's a tough one. You have to remember that he has only 18 months left on his contract at the Emirates and that will affect the price Arsenal could ask for the Dutchman.

They would have to accept a lot less money if he were heading for his final year without a new deal in place.

But if you were to put him in the same situation as Fernando Torres and Andy Carroll, who left Liverpool and Newcastle respectively in mid-contract, then you would have to put him in a similar price range as those highly-priced strikers.

To Arsenal, he is simply invaluable because his goals have been so productive in terms of games won.

For them to even consider selling Van Persie would be unthinkable and I am sure Arsenal will be doing all they can to get him to sign an extended contract.

There will be no shortage of takers if he does decide to leave because his reputation has soared so much in the last 12 months.

A lot will depend on how Arsenal's season pans out.

If they continue to progress up the Premier League, qualify for the Champions League again and go a long way in the European competition this term, then that will provide boss Wenger with some powerful ammunition to persuade his super striker to stay.

If you look over the history of the Premier League, there have been some great strikers down the years — players like Andy Cole, Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney... the list goes on.

I would put Robin van Persie right up with the best.

And by the end of the year, the record books will verify that claim.

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