Arsenal

Ian Wright: 'Alexis Sanchez a luxury Arsenal cannot afford'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 19 September 2017

Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright believes that Arsene Wenger should consider leaving Alexis Sanchez out of his starting lineup more often against big-name sides.

Ian Wright has suggested that former side Arsenal would be better off starting without star forward Alexis Sanchez against fellow big-name sides.

The Gunners claimed a well-earned point in their meeting with London rivals Chelsea at the weekend, ending their miserable run of results at Stamford Bridge in the process.

Sanchez started the match on the bench, while fellow playmaker Mesut Ozil was absent due to injury, and Wright believes that Arsene Wenger should consider a similar ploy in future games against teams that can punish Arsenal.

"Everyone knows how highly I rate Sanchez and I'd like to see him play as much as possible before moving on," he 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 FC Koln 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."

Welbeck has been ruled out of action for around a month with the groin injury sustained against Chelsea.