Since the end of last season, Arsenal fans have long been aware of Alexis Sánchez’s apparent desire to leave the Emirates and therefore prepared for his departure either this summer or next on a free accordingly.
Yet that still didn’t stop them descending into meltdown over the weekend when - taking attention away from a thrilling 4-3 season-opening victory over Leicester City which, despite defensively-poor, produced numerous positives on an attacking-front – the Chilean international had forgotten to conceal his location in a social media post.
For Sánchez was apparently in Paris, presumably in talks to join Edinson Cavani and Neymar in up front at PSG, which has given other noted admirers a nudge to up the ante.
Though Arsenal refuse to sell to a Premier League club, with defending champions Chelsea also apparently interested, this still hasn’t been enough to deter Man City from finally testing the waters with the readying of a £60mn bid.
If it were down to Arsene Wenger, Sánchez wouldn’t be sold at all – instead forced to run down his contract in helping the Gunners return to Champions football he so desperately craves and has been cited as his primary motivation for leaving.
Yet an offer of this magnitude may be hard to turn down for club officials and still far safer than Sánchez underperforming, the team missing out on qualification to European football’s premier club competition and its adjoining TV money, and allowing him to move on through the Bosman ruling.
It is believed that City are prepared to offer a staggering £400,000 a week contract to Sánchez; eager to reunite with coach Pep Guardiola who had originally purchased him from Udinese for Barcelona during the Nou Camp’s fabled ‘tiki-taki’ era.
Missing the Leicester match he watched from the stands before heading to Paris, the 28-year-old is also tipped to sit out an away fixture against Stoke City on Saturday due to an injury the player’s camp insist is genuine and not a ruse designed to push through a transfer away from north London.