It looked like it was only a matter of time before Alexis Sanchez signed for Manchester City, but today Manchester United and Liverpool are reported to have entered the transfer race for the Arsenal striker.
Manchester City have been long-term suitors of the 29-year-old. Yesterday The Guardian reported that the club had offered Arsenal a £20million transfer fee and the player a deal worth £250,000 a week to join this month.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Today the Sanchez transfer saga has taken a new twist with news that United and Liverpool are also interested in making a bid.
Sky in Italy is reporting that United are ready to hijack City by offering midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan as part of a £25m deal for Sanchez. And the Daily Express says that Liverpool have enquired about the former Barcelona star.
Chilean journalist Maks Cardenas said on Twitter (as reported by the Express) that although United and Liverpool have made contact with Arsenal for Sanchez, the decision will come down to the player. “He wants to play with Pep [Guardiola],” Cardenas tweeted.
With Philippe Coutinho leaving for Barcelona, Sanchez is seen by Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp as an ideal replacement for the Brazilian playmaker.
While United manager Jose Mourinho already has Romelu Lukaku, Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Zlatan Ibrahimovic as part of his striking options, the opportunity to sign the Chilean star will not just improve his squad but also put one over rivals City.
United midfielder Mkhitaryan is out of favour at Old Trafford and may want to leave in order to play more first-team football.