Man United waits on Sanchez-Mkhitaryan swap deal, City moves on

Jose Mourinho appeared to be in the dark about the progress of Manchester United's attempt to sign Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez in a potential swap for Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola seemed to know more.

"I think he is going to go to United," Guardiola said about Sanchez, "so congratulations for both of them."

The transfer that has been the talk of English soccer this month still wasn't completed Friday, with Sanchez remaining an Arsenal player heading into the latest round of Premier League matches this weekend.

United and Arsenal are in negotiations over a swap deal involving Sanchez and Mkhitaryan, with Mourinho saying he wasn't sure what was behind the holdup.

"When it goes to the table of negotiations, I like to be out," Mourinho said. "I will just be calmly waiting for news, no more than that. Not done. Not done at all," Mourinho added, when asked if he had an update. "So, in this moment, Mkhitaryan is our player, Sanchez an Arsenal player."

Mkhitaryan trained with United on Friday but has been left out of the squad to play Burnley at Turf Moor on Saturday. He was also omitted by United for its 3-0 win over Stoke on Monday.

The Armenia midfielder is key to the deal, with Arsenal potentially only allowing Sanchez to leave if the team gets a replacement.

Across town, at a Man City news conference held concurrently with United's, Guardiola spoke like a man who was ready to move on from the Sanchez saga.

City was close to signing Sanchez last year, but a deal fell through on the final day of the transfer window. The Premier League leaders looked to be favorites to sign him when the transfer market reopened this month, yet ended their interest when Sanchez and his agent increased their financial demands.

"Players, when they have contenders (for their signature), decide where they want to play, even their managers (agents) decide where they want to play," Guardiola said. "They've decided that. Good luck."

Liverpool tried to sign Sanchez in 2014 — when the Chile forward chose instead to join Arsenal from Barcelona — and wasn't prepared to make a new bid for him 3 1/2 years later.

Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp said signing Sanchez "makes sense for pretty much each team in the world."

"I have nothing to say about the numbers," Klopp said, "but I cannot imagine that Manchester City leaves the race because of money. Maybe it's because there are two opportunities in Manchester, and if you think you can go to one or the other, then maybe one club thinks I don't want him anymore. It's not about money, I'm sure."

What to watch out for this weekend

There was no rush to declare the Premier League title race back on after Manchester City slipped to a first loss of the season last weekend at Liverpool.

It might happen if City drop points at home to Newcastle on Saturday. City still holds a 12point lead after 23 of 38 games, leaving the teams in the chasing pack — led by Manchester United — no room for error if they are to have any chance of reeling in Pep Guardiola's side. However, in the last three games, City has drawn at Crystal Palace and lost at Anfield, so its charge has slowed.

Newcastle is only three points above the relegation zone, but has won its last two away matches — at Stoke and West Ham.

United travels to Burnley while Liverpool and Chelsea — level on points in third and fourth, respectively — also have away games, at Swansea and Brighton.

Son rising to celebrated status in Premier League

He's the humble Tottenham attacker in the form of his life, breaking records in the Premier League and helping to carry his nation's hopes heading into the World Cup.

Son Heung-min might operate in the shadow of Harry Kane at the London club — after all, who doesn't? — but there is a growing appreciation of the artistry and end product of the South Korean and he is establishing himself as one of the best forwards in English soccer.

Son's statistics speak for themselves: He's scored in seven of Tottenham's last 11 games; he's either scored or assisted 10 of his team's league-high 24 goals since the start of December; with eight league goals, he has netted more than Alexis Sanchez, Eden Hazard and Riyad Mahrez — three of the league's most celebrated forwards.

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Cup 4th round

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