SANCHEZ IS GUNNER GO
End for Alexis as Wenger Kops it
ALEXIS SANCHEZ wore the look on the bench of a man who can’t wait to leave Arsenal.
Starsport revealed last week that behind the scenes he is making no secret of his desire to quit the Emirates at the end of the season.
His relationship with boss Arsene Wenger is in tatters after another bust-up in training and then the remarkable decision to drop the Gunners’ top scorer to the bench for Saturday’s crushing defeat at Anfield.
Wenger claimed afterwards that he axed his star man because he wanted to go more direct against Liverpool.
But his explanation didn’t stack up, with the Gunners adopting their usual passing style as fuming Sanchez watched on from the sidelines, looking like a man who can’t wait to join another club.
Thump
Paris St-Germain, Juventus and Sevilla are all chasing him and Sanchez, 28, knows he has a better chance of winning titles and challenging for the Champions League away from Arsenal.
The Chilean has refused to sign a new deal and when asked about him, Wenger hinted at problems, saying: “I don’t consider the contract situation at all when the contract has 18 months to go. I will explain that later.
“If you make a decision, you make a decision. People are always emotional in their analysis of this kind of decision.”
While Wenger struggles with his star player, questions over his own future and just staying in the top four, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is struggling with constant mood swings.
In the space of a week Klopp has gone from one of the lowest lows to one of the ultimate highs.
Since the start of 2017 the German has seen his side struggle to beat an egg during a woeful run that culminated in a shock 3-1 smashing at relegation-threatened Leicester last Monday.
But on Saturday Klopp watched his side thump Arsenal by the same scoreline, helped by Wenger’s selection shocker.
The hosts charged into a two-goal lead thanks to strikes from Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane before half-time.
Sanchez joined the action after the break to help Danny Welbeck pull one back, but Georginio Wijnaldum completed the win at the death. The triumph was richly deserved by a Liverpool team that showed more hunger, desire and fight than the pitiful Gunners.
Klopp said: “When the week starts after Leicester, everybody was angry – then we produce this performance against Arsenal.
“But then the question is immediately about the next game against Burnley. My job is to produce the right mood and I feel especially responsible after not-so-good performances.
“After the last game, I was low, angry or whatever. But I am not angry in this moment.
“It is not that we are not serious in the things that we are doing. The important thing in a development is that you take the information you get and work with it. Most of the information you don’t like. When everything is perfect already, then you think, ‘Yeah, well, okay, come on we’re done, now we can deliver’.
“We can deliver very often, but in life we are all a little bit like this that we let the bad things influence us more than the good things – otherwise we would celebrate our birthday maybe longer than just one day.
“We are like this, but especially in this moment the club is completely together. We are completely fine, the owners are fine, they are completely with us and with the players we have a wonderful relationship.’’