What's the story?
Arsene Wenger's decision to drop Alexis Sanchez to the bench in a crucial league game against Liverpool on Saturday backfired as Arsenal lost 3-1 to Liverpool.
Also Read: Arsenal reportedly begin search for Alexis Sanchez's replacement
As per a report in The Telegraph, the reason for him being dropped was because the Chilean had walked out of training after a bust-up with teammates and coaching staff just days before the Liverpool game.
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Many news outlets believe that Wenger has been frustrated with the player's reluctance to sign a new contract and hence chose to bench him against Liverpool with Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain vying for the Chilean’s signature.
Wenger denied those charges and maintained that a £180,000 per week contract is on the table for Sanchez. On the other hand, PSG are reportedly willing to pay him £300,000 to lure him to the Parc des Princes.
The heart of the matter
The Telegraph report states that when Sanchez walked off mid-session, many of his teammates berated him in the changing room. Seeing this clash of egos, Wenger decided it was best to put the 28-year-old on the bench. The Arsenal manager revealed prior to the match that it was a tactical decision to drop Sanchez as he wanted to be more direct and win a lot of aerial balls against the Reds.
Arsenal players believe that the Chilean has become selfish since the past couple of months with his public bouts of frustration not boding well with the players or the manager. Despite the media criticising Wenger for dropping Sanchez, sources claim that the players back the Frenchman's decision to banish Sanchez to the bench following the bust-up.
Parallels from history
This reported incident is not the first time that the Arsenal attacker has publicly shown his anger and displeasure against his teammates. He threw his gloves on the floor in anger when Arsenal drew 3-3 against Bournemouth while also showing his annoyance at being substituted in a 4-0 win over Swansea City.
Also Read: Why selling one of Mesut Ozil or Alexis Sanchez is a logical move for Arsenal
The Chilean also had a public row with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in their 5-1 rout at the hands of Bayern Munich.
Sportskeeda's Take
After conceding the first goal against Liverpool, Sanchez was seen laughing on the bench which would have not pleased Arsenal fans. If reports of the public bust-up are true, Wenger’s decision to bench his star player makes complete sense now.
