Arsenal’s weekend has gone from bad to worse after Arsene Wenger revealed Alexis Sanchez’s ankle is in a ‘terrible state’ in the wake of their 3-1 defeat to West Brom on Saturday.
Sanchez, 28, drew Arsenal level in the match midway through the first half before being forced off with an ankle injury with 12 minutes remaining after failing to recover from a late first half tackle from James McClean.
The Chile international, who is widely expected to leave Arsenal at the end of the season, was a figure of frustration in the first half after feeling like he was on the receiving end of a series of illegal tackles before eventually succumbing to injury in the second half.
McClean picked up a booking just before the interval with a late tackle that left Sanchez in a heap on half way and grimacing at his ankle, and Wenger confirmed after the match that the former Barcelona forward may not be sidelined for some time.
“He stayed on but in the second half he was not himself,” Wenger told Sky Sports, via EPSN. “He just limped so I decided to take him off. And his ankle doesn’t look good.
“He was injured from the tackle in the first half. It was a bad tackle. His ankle is in absolutely terrible state. He should not have played in the second half but he insisted that he wanted to come out.
“In the first half he was the one who created many chances, made dangerous situations and in the second half you could see that he couldn’t anymore. In the end we had to take him off. He should not even have played in the second half.”
With Wenger’s future still up in the air, it comes at an awful time for the Arsenal boss with big matches to come. Arsenal face Manchester City straight after the international break and will need their No.7 back fit to have any real chance of overcoming Pep Guardiola’s side.
Indeed, no Premier League player has been involved in more goals this season than Sanchez (27 - 18 goals, nine assists).
For more stats on Alexis Sanchez, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
