Arsenal: Alexis Sanchez To Chelsea Reminiscent Of Armageddon Past

Alexis Sanchez is being linked with a move to Chelsea. The reports are eerily similar to an event from Arsenal’s armageddon past.

It was the summer of 2012. Arsenal had, again, hauled their way back into the top four with a sterling run of form to end the year after a mid-season slump that saw them exit the Champions League and almost drop out of the top four and finish below the dastardly Spurs.

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Much of their success was down the free-flowing goals of Robin Van Persie. The Flying Dutchman was sensational throughout the year, topping the league scoring charts with 30 goals in 38 appearances. The previous season, for which he was injured for the first half or so, he had scored 18 goals in 25 appearances – six of those were as a substitute as he looked recover his match sharpness.

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Van Persie was, without a doubt, the hottest striker in world football at the time and, naturally, there were many suitors for his services after a stellar 18 month period. The issue for Arsenal was his contract. Thanks to his lingering injury issues throughout his career in North London, Arsene Wenger was hesitant to ever extend his deal, tying him down for the foreseeable future.

As such, he entered that fateful summer with just one year remaining and no intention of signing a new one. Arsenal were forced to sell and Manchester United were looking to buy. Sir Alex Ferguson duly got his man and proceeded to watch him fire his side to the Premier League title the following year scoring 26 goals. Ferguson would subsequently retire on a high, founded on the ruthless left-foot of Van Persie.

The Gunners now enter the 2017 summer in a similarly concerning scenario. Alexis Sanchez, very much like Van Persie before him, has been the instigator, the driving force of Arsenal’s season thus far. He is also entering the close of the season with just one more year remaining on his current deal. The vultures are beginning to circle and an exit is looking more and more likely with talks over a new deal once again on hold.

Per recent reports, one of those vultures is Chelsea. Under Antonio Conte, the Blues are set to win their second Premier League title in three years thanks to a boundless N’Golo Kante and a bamboozling system. It would be disastrous for Arsenal to see Sanchez switch allegiances across the London divide.

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Placing the electric Chilean in the already formidable Chelsea team is a frightening prospect. For the Gunners, it may be a prospect that sees their Premier League hopes on hold for another year. That would be armageddon for Wenger and his tenure, an armageddon that is worryingly reminiscent of the past.