Uruguyan full-back Jorge Fucile has labelled Arsenal FC forward Alexis Sanchez as being mentally weak, while Arsene Wenger confirmed that the Chilean will miss the start of season.
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Jorge Fucile was one of the two Uruguayan players sent off during the quarter-final clash against Chile, in the recently concluded Copa America. The defender received his second yellow of the match after a crunching tackle on Alexis Sanchez. Chile won that game and went on to win the tournament, defeating Argentina in the final.
a His legs were shakinga
The 30-year-old fullback however has criticized Sanchez and insisted that the Arsenal forward is mentally weak.
a I touched the ball first, any other forward would have jumped in that moment. It seems that this guy is mentally weak.
a I was running and I couldn’t stop myself, so I kicked him. When the match was 0-0, this guy was missing in action.
a We talked during the match, but what happens on the pitch, stays on the pitch. I don’t know what you call this kind of person. I can only say that his legs were shaking.
a The worst part was in a moment when he was near my sector and he said: “Mr. Ref, he’s kicking me, he’s kicking me”. The official responded him: a You are doing your work, they’re doing theirs.a a a The Nacional defender was quoted saying by Daily Mail.
Sanchez to miss the start of the new season
Meanwhile, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed that Alexis Sanchez will miss the start of the season. The Frenchman said that Sanchez will return to the training on 3rd of August and could miss their opening match in the new season.
“Alexis will be back with us on 3 August and usually it takes three weeks to be competitive.
“With Alexis it could be a bit less. He will miss certainly the first game.” a The Arsenal manager said.
Much needed rest of the Chilean
Arsenal will face Chelsea in the community shield on 2nd of August and the Chilean will certainly miss that game. But the 26-year-old is in need of rest after playing non-stop football over the past two seasons. Before signing for Arsenal, Sanchez participated in the World Cup with Chile as they reached the round of 16. He then went on to make 52 appearances for the Gunners in all competitions and followed that up with a title winning campaign with Chile in the Copa America.
Sanchez is one of those players who is desperate to play every time and Arsene Wenger will hope that he can recover fast after such arduous season. The problem for Arsenal might not be the fact that Sanchez will miss the opening matches, but that he might return too quickly for his own good.