Arsenal legend Ray Parlour believes most footballers would “snap your hands off” for the huge wages the Gunners are prepared to offer Alexis Sanchez.
The Chile international has been offered improved terms worth up to £300,000-a-week to extend his Arsenal contract, which expires at the end of the season, but Sanchez has made clear his desire to leave.
A £60million move to Manchester City fell through in the final hours as Arsenal failed to pull off a £92m deal to bring in Thomas Lemar from Monaco as Sanchez’s replacement.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger still holds out a hope that Sanchez can be convinced to sign a deal that would place him among the Premier League’s top earners, a deal that Parlour would not hesitate to put pen to paper on.
“I know they’ve put a very, very good offer on the table which most footballers would snap your hands off for,” Parlour, speaking to celebrate the launch of Papa John's new Deep Crust pizza, told Standard Sport. “But he’s getting advised by other people who are telling him he can get this and that.
“The news was floating around that he wanted over £400,000-a-week, which is ludicrous really, but there’s an offer of £300,000 on the table. That’s really good money.
“Maybe he needs a fresh start. Oxlade-Chamberlain is a prime example, they put a good offer down for him but he wanted to move. It’s a shame for Arsenal but if the player wants to go he will eventually.
In Pictures | Alexis Sanchez at Arsenal
“I’m sure he will put 100 per cent in in every game this season and then if he doesn’t want to stay you just move on. No player is bigger than the club and we’ve seen so many fantastic players leave the club. It’s hard to deal with but you’ve got to.”
After a summer in which they had insisted Sanchez would be held to the final year of his deal the decision to sanction the sale, even if it was contingent on a replacement being secured, led to Arsenal’s transfer window being widely decried as a shambles.
That was despite the fact that Arsenal retained Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, another on a soon-to-expire deal, and addressed two major weaknesses in attack and on the left side of defence with the signings of Alexandre Lacazette and Sead Kolasinac.
Parlour, though, suggests it is too soon to write off Arsenal’s summer.
“Lacazette was a good signing. Kolasinac will be a good signing,” he added.
“Everybody has been waiting on Sanchez and while £60M is a hard thing to turn down you’re losing 25 goals a season if he leaves. Look at his character: I’m sure he’ll put 100 per cent in every week. He’ll chase the ball as hard as he did last season.
“Oxlade-Chamberlain didn’t want to sign, simple. Good luck to him, I hope he has a great career at Liverpool. Ozil, I’m sure they’ll be working on his contract.
“They’ll go back for Lemar in January probably but I would maybe have liked to see a Cazorla-type come in to midfield. Maybe that gives an opportunity to Jack, who knows? I’d love to see him get another chance.”
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