Wrighty labels Sanchez ‘a luxury Arsenal cannot afford’
Arsenal legend Ian Wright has suggested that Alexis Sanchez is a ‘luxury you cannot afford’ against big teams that can punish you.
The Gunners drew 0-0 with Chelsea on Sunday (read the 16 Conclusions here) without either Sanchez or the injured Mesut Ozil in the starting line-up.
Danny Welbeck and Alex Iwobi started in the attacking midfield positions behind Alexandre Lacazette, though the former could now be out for a month after suffering a groin injury in that game.
‘Everyone knows how highly I rate Sanchez and I’d like to see him play as much as possible before moving on,’ Wright told The Sun.
‘But you do wonder if he is a luxury you cannot afford in games like the ones against Liverpool and Chelsea.
‘And I’m not just saying this because of their goalless draw at the Bridge – I’ve thought this way for a while.
‘Sanchez will get you wonder goals, like he did against Cologne in the Europa League, but he does lose the ball a lot when he cuts inside.
‘And that can spell real trouble. You can get away with it against most teams and, like I said, the good far outweighs the bad stuff with Sanchez.
‘It’s a pity Danny Welbeck suffered what looks another bad injury because him and Alexandre Lacazette were starting to build a good understanding.
‘But if Arsenal play with the same guts, character and belief that we saw against Chelsea, maybe the future is not as bleak as we feared.’