Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Alexis Sanchez has the flu and now won’t be returning to training until Tuesday.
Although Alexis was originally supposed to return from his extended summer break today (Sunday), Wenger has now confirmed that he won’t be back at London Colney until Tuesday as he has the flu.
“He has flu, yes. I had him on text yesterday,” revealed Wenger after the Gunners’ 5-2 Emirates Cup win over Benfica on Saturday, reports Arsenal.com.
“He will come back as soon as possible and we were in touch with him and his doctor and he has no basic problem apart from the fact that he should come back tomorrow, but he comes back on Tuesday.”
The boss was also a pretty cagey about conversations he and the Chilean had had via text message. However, I’d be surprised if Alexis had attempted to hand in a transfer request via Whatsapp, and the boss claimed that the situation remains the same.
“I don’t want to talk (about the texts),” he said. “I cannot reveal what is a secret conversation.”
Alexis revealed via his social media on Friday that he was ‘sick’, complete with cringe-worthy selfies of him looking ‘sad’ and wrapped up in a scarf. However, Arsenal fans – and the media – were instantly suspicious considering the rumours circulating regarding a potential move away from north London this summer.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXEmsmhlNNx/?taken-by=alexis_officia1&hl=en
The forward has a year left on his deal and while Wenger has always maintained that he’ll be staying put whether he signs a new contract or not, that hasn’t stopped speculation that he’s unhappy.
Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are the main two clubs in the frame right now, with Arsenal reportedly refusing to allow their best player to join their title rivals for any amount of money. Although the Mirror did claim that they would for £80m.
For all we know, Alexis really is sick. However, if he’s not back in training bright and early on Tuesday, the amount of noise surrounding his situation at Arsenal is only going to get louder.