sanchez thrilled to join manchester united
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

Sanchez 'thrilled' to join Manchester United

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today Sanchez 'thrilled' to join Manchester United

Alexis Sanchez joined Manchester United on Monday in a rare swap deal among two of England’s top teams that
MANCHESTER - Arab Today

Alexis Sanchez joined Manchester United on Monday in a rare swap deal among two of England’s top teams that saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan move to Arsenal.

“I am thrilled to be joining the biggest club in the world,” said Sanchez, a former Barcelona player who had an opportunity to join United’s neighbor and fierce Premier League rival, Manchester City.

“The chance to play in this historic stadium (Old Trafford) and to work with (United manager) Jose Mourinho was something I could not turn down.”

The transfers of the 29-year-old players were announced simultaneously, with Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger saying Mkhitaryan was a “very complete player.”

“It’s a dream come true,” Mkhitaryan said, “because I’ve always dreamed of playing for Arsenal.”

No financial details were disclosed, but United said Mkhitaryan was joining as “part of the deal” to bring Sanchez to Old Trafford.

Signing Sanchez is being viewed as a real statement by United, like Eric Cantona joined in 1992 and Robin van Persie — who also arrived from Arsenal — in 2012. Beating City to the Chile forward will make his arrival all the more sweet for United fans and Mourinho.

“Alexis is one of the best attacking players in the world,” Mourinho said. “He will bring his ambition, drive and personality, qualities that make a Manchester United player, and a player that makes the team stronger and the supporters proud of their club dimension and prestige.”

City came close to signing Sanchez in August and looked to be the favorite to get him this month, only to end its interest in the forward following a rival bid from United. The Premier League leader said Sanchez and his agent increased their financial demands and that it didn’t want to destabilize the team by bringing in a player who would be its highest earner.

City, the league leader by 12 points, didn’t particularly need Sanchez, who had entered the final six months of his contract at Arsenal. That wasn’t necessarily the case for United.

Sanchez will add some dynamism and unpredictability to a front line that already includes Romelu Lukaku, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford. Mourinho tried unsuccessfully to sign a winger in the last offseason.

Sanchez joined Arsenal from Barcelona in July 2014 for about 30 million pounds, choosing a move to London amid interest from Liverpool.

He was the top scorer in two of his three completed seasons at Emirates Stadium and helped Arsenal win the FA Cup in 2015 and ’17, quickly becoming a favorite with the fans. However, with Sanchez happy to run down his contract, Wenger accepted the need to sell his star player.

Wenger rejected the theory that Sanchez was disrupting the harmony in the Arsenal team in his final months there.

“He’s a very professional player who has been committed until the last minute,” Wenger said. “In training, he was practicing with full power, so I never questioned that. I never had any doubts about that.”

Before Arsenal, Sanchez scored 39 goals in his three seasons at Barcelona after joining from Italian club Udinese.

Mkhitaryan was substituted at halftime of his first league start for United, setting the tone for what has turned out to be a disappointing spell after arriving in English soccer for $33.5 million and with a big reputation in 2016.

Mkhitaryan moved to United from Borussia Dortmund, where he was the German league player of the year, but struggled to secure a regular place in the team under Mourinho except in the first few months of this season.

The Armenia international scored 23 goals and set up 32 more in his last season at Dortmund but failed to reproduce anything close to those numbers at United.

With injuries affecting Mkhitaryan in his early months at United, Mourinho said the player needed time to adjust to the physicality and intensity of the Premier League.

He finished last season by scoring an acrobatic goal in United’s 2-0 win over Ajax in the Europa League final in Stockholm and began this season well, too, setting up five goals in his first three games.

Mkhitaryan has been a marginal figure at United in recent months, with Jesse Lingard starting ahead of him behind Lukaku. He has five goals in 39 league appearances for United, rarely completing 90 minutes.

The 29-year-old Mkhitaryan has previously said his favorite team was Arsenal and his impressive technique, allied with Wenger’s naturally attacking philosophy, should make him a good fit at the London club.

“He creates chances, he defends well, he can absorb distances and he’s very committed as well,” Wenger said. “I must say he’s a player who has all the attributes.”

Sanchez’s debut for United could come on Friday, in the FA Cup fourth-round match at fourth-tier Yeovil.

Mkhitaryan is cup-tied in that competition, so could make his debut against Swansea next week

Source: AFP

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

sanchez thrilled to join manchester united sanchez thrilled to join manchester united

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

sanchez thrilled to join manchester united sanchez thrilled to join manchester united

 



GMT 21:16 2016 Monday ,27 June

Zaki Badr discusses cleaning problem in Giza

GMT 21:46 2017 Saturday ,14 January

Turkey arrests 60 businessmen for alleged Gulen ties

GMT 22:38 2017 Friday ,24 March

Abbas meets with Merkel in Berlin

GMT 09:02 2017 Monday ,27 March

Tunisian Premier Concludes Visit to Sudan

GMT 15:54 2017 Friday ,01 September

Attorney General Directs Prosecutors to inspect Prison

GMT 09:22 2017 Sunday ,31 December

HM King condoles with Afghanistan President

GMT 10:12 2016 Wednesday ,06 April

Strong dollar, mild weather shrink H&M profits

GMT 17:03 2016 Saturday ,24 December

7 police killed in attacks in Afghansitan

GMT 13:51 2017 Friday ,17 March

Israel denies Syria shot down a warplane

GMT 04:08 2017 Thursday ,05 January

Carbon tax can fund clean energy transition

GMT 19:27 2016 Wednesday ,14 September

Alstom to go ahead with plans to shut down Belfort plant

GMT 01:44 2017 Friday ,15 December

Mennat-Allah underlines importance of landscapes

GMT 04:57 2017 Thursday ,14 December

Trump tells NASA to send Americans to Moon

GMT 21:43 2017 Wednesday ,11 October

Qabil discusses with Swiss delegation improving power

GMT 21:06 2017 Sunday ,17 September

OIC condemns suicide attack in Kabul

GMT 08:27 2017 Thursday ,27 April

Nokia reports another loss as networks sag

GMT 19:41 2017 Monday ,06 February

Elina Svitolina Claims Taiwan Open Title

GMT 09:39 2017 Friday ,03 February

Former Brazilian president Lula's wife dies of stroke
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday