Man Utd’s Manuel Ugarte in doubt to face Brentford after suffering knock vs Ecuador
The nature of his injury remains unclear, but it raises concerns over his availability for Saturday’s clash at Old Trafford.
Will the 29-year-old ever be forgiven by the Gunners faithful for his move to Old Trafford?
Alexis Sanchez on Monday committed the unforgivable act of transferring to arch-rivals Manchester United and while he uploaded a post bidding farewell to Arsenal fans, not everyone from the Gunners faithful was impressed.
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It’s interesting to note that the Chilean has taken a swipe at the many ex-Arsenal players, who are now pundits, over fabricating stories of a dressing-room divide over his contract situation.
Sanchez had declined to sign a contract extension at the end of the last season as he made his intent to leave the Emirates clear but Arsene Wenger, somewhat divisively, refused to sell the winger in the summer transfer window.
Manchester City and Chelsea were, among others, in the race to sign the wantaway star, but were eventually priced out of a deal as the North Londoners were demanding a figure said to be in the region of £50 million for a player who was on the verge of turning 29 and was in the final year of his contract.
Last-minute deals broke down and the Chilean stayed put in North London beyond the transfer deadline, but as soon as the January window opened, reports of Manchester City and Manchester United renewing their interest surfaced.
Involved in a straight swap deal with out-of-favour midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Sanchez finally put pen to paper a deal with the Red Devils on Monday which will reportedly see him become the highest earner in the Premier League.
While Sanchez has not quite been vilified to the extent Robin van Persie was when the Dutchman crossed the great divide in 2012, the fact that he chose Manchester United over Manchester City has not gone down well with Arsenal fans.
Considering the Sky Blues are a lock to win the Premier League title this season and employ one of the most vaunted managers in the world, Pep Guardiola, a move to the Etihad seemed imminent when they made an opening bid less than a fortnight ago.
However, United swooped in late and have said to offered the Chilean, who turns 30 this year, wages that would dwarf his current ones.
And the fact that they were offering Mkhitaryan as a part of the deal made sense to Arsenal as well, it must be noted.
Since arriving from Barcelona in 2014, the hardworking Sanchez had become something of a cult figure at the Emirates with performances that put him at the very top of the Premier League’s talents, but he had reportedly become jaded with the club’s lack of ambition, especially in the transfer market, as they struggled to compete for the league title.
Probably till a year ago, a vast majority of Arsenal fans would have bought Sanchez’s jersey, but there will be many who would rather burn it now. Whether their wounds will ever heal, only time will tell.
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