Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has revealed that he believes Alexis Sanchez has been tapped up this summer, and he isn’t impressed about it.
The Chilean international has 12 months remaining on his current contract with the Gunners, and with no renewal imminent, speculation has been rife over a possible exit.
Arsenal’s stance throughout hasn’t changed as they wish to keep their talismanic forward who was so influential for them last season, but while the rumour refuses to go away, Wenger isn’t too pleased with what he believes is happening in the background in football.
“We are in a strong financial situation so we want to keep our best players. Has he asked to leave? No,” he is quoted as saying by The Telegraph.
When specifically asked about his player being tapped up: “What do you think? If you have top players you cannot stop it from happening. It’s frustrating but you’ve got to fight against it.
“Honestly, it is a problem, I don’t deny that. But is there a realistic way to fight against it? That’s the question that I ask. We’ve fought against this for 20 years but it still happens. How can you check when an agent meets a director from another club or which player speaks to who.
“It happens every day. I don’t know what we need to do really because no-one has found the right solution.
“We are respectful with the clubs. We ask them what they want to do and if they don’t want to sell then we don’t insist. For some, that is where the difference is.”
The veteran tactician isn’t the first, and certainly won’t be the last, manager to complain about such practices, and in fairness who knows if he’s ever done similar.
However, the fact doesn’t change that Arsenal hope that Sanchez stays with Wenger in north London this summer and beyond, but with so much uncertainty still hanging over his future, it remains to be seen what happens with the Chilean forward.