Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has revealed that it is his own decision to keep Alexis Sanchez at the Emirates for the season. The Chile international has entered the final 12 months of his Gunners contract but talks over an extension don’t seem coming.
Sanchez, 28, returned to first-team training with Arsenal earlier on Tuesday, and he appeared in good mood during the week after he was spotted kissing his Gunners badge during an open training session on Thursday.
.@Alexis_Sanchez with a cheeky kiss of the badge? 😘
The @Arsenal star appears in a jovial mood ahead of open training at the Emirates. #AFC pic.twitter.com/EufVJj2FFW
— Hayters TV (@HaytersTV) August 3, 2017
Wenger has repeatedly stressed that Sanchez would be at Arsenal beyond the summer, and prior to the Community Shield game versus Chelsea, and he admitted that the club has backed his decision to keep the attacker for the campaign.
“Yes, the board supports me to make the decisions on a technical front. I can tell you is that he is focused, and my decision is clear: he will stay and he will respect that. It is as simple as that,” he said h/t Sky Sports News.
“Every negotiation has to be a little bit secret. The transparency of society is very pushy but we have to resist a little bit, as much as we can. I think he will be here this season, and if we can do it for more seasons we will do it as well.”
Sanchez bagged 24 goals and 10 assists for the Gunners last term as they finished fifth with 75 points – the highest ever points achieved from the position in Premier League history.
The attacker has attracted interest from the likes of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain in the past few weeks, but there does not appear to be any movement in terms of negotiations with Wenger maintaining his stance of not selling Sanchez.
Arsenal take on Chelsea in the Community Shield later this afternoon, and Sanchez could be left out of the squad completely with Wenger mulling over his fitness levels.
