Arsene Wenger admits Alexis Sanchez came with the Arsenal team to the hotel the night before Crystal Palace, but left after the club agreed the Henrikh Mkhitaryan swap deal.
Wenger left Sanchez out of the Gunners’ match against AFC Bournemouth the previous weekend. At the time, many fans thought that spelled the end for the Chilean’s time in Arsenal colours. Clearly the manager was willing to call Manchester United’s bluff and keep the winger though.
Wenger says Sanchez came with the #afc team to the hotel the night before playing #cpfc and was ready to play but he let him go as the deal to join #mufc was then agreed that evening.
— James Olley (@JamesOlley) January 23, 2018
The boss was seemingly willing to use Sanchez in Saturday’s match at the Emirates. Fortunately, the Gunners finally reached an agreement with United for Mkhitaryan before that could happen.
In my opinion, Arsenal players were playing with a shadow over their heads for a few weeks. Whether Alexis was in the team, on the bench or at home, he was on everybody’s minds. Even when the Gunners won matches, the 29-year-old still stole the spotlight. For example, that ridiculous story about the Crystal Palace split-celebration.
You saw the team play with a weight off their shoulders at the weekend. By that point, they all knew Sanchez was leaving, and put in an emphatic performance to show they’re not just going to shut up shop without him. A 4-1 win was the perfect response to the news. Hopefully they can follow it up with another win against Chelsea, to get a run going.