Arsenal: Could you blame Alexis Sanchez for wanting to leave?

Alexis Sanchez looked rather despondent on the bench as the dying embers simmered of Arsenal’s four-goal dismantling at the hands of Liverpool. He looked like he wanted to leave, and could you blame him?

While some may argue otherwise, I think it’s fairly safe to conclude that Alexis Sanchez does not want to be an Arsenal player for too much longer. Now, that may not mean that he departs before Thursday night’s deadline. But it does mean that it would be a real shock if he were to sign a new deal and extend his North London tenure beyond the expiration of his current contract next summer.

Arsene Wenger has long professed that Sanchez will not be leaving this summer. Steadfast and unwavering, he has hung to that statement amid the storms of the media like a limpet to a rock amid the crashing waves.

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But in his first appearance this season after returning from an abdominal strain, the body language was pretty clear; ‘I want to leave’ was the Chilean’s cry. It is difficult to blame the 4-0 loss to Liverpool on Sanchez. Despite a diminished influence on the game, especially in comparison to Mohamed Salah and Saido Mane, he was offered little help from his teammates and provided no foundation from a deeper lying midfield to build upon in the final third.

Sanchez did try, though. He had several pointed dribbles forward. He skipped past Joe Gomez on a few occasions and did look like the most threatening of the Arsenal attackers. But suggesting he still wants to stay after an abject team performance like that is naive. The issue, though, does not come in Sanchez’s wanting to leave. It is in the justification of it.

Can you blame a player of Sanchez’s drive, determination and quality for wanting to leave? He is at a club out of the Champions League, with little chance of a trophy or title, surrounded by players far below his level.

For Arsenal, the far more concerning truth is that Sanchez is justified in wanting to leave. Quite simply, it’s fair enough. If he wants to go and challenge for trophies, then he will not do that in North London.

Whether Wenger will go against his word and sell Sanchez this week or not, only time will tell. I’m sure he’ll be desperate to hold onto him, such is his importance and influence.

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But Sanchez will be leaving the Emirates soon. Either this year or the next. His exit is looming and I cannot blame him for wanting one whatsoever.

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