BEVERLY HILLS, January 23, (THEWILL) –
Manchester United have completed the transfer of Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan joining the Gunners in a straight player swap with no fees involved.
The two Premier League clubs announced on Monday evening that both players had completed medicals and put pen-to-paper on contracts.
Sanchez has signed a three-year contract with Man United while Mkhitaryan has penned a four-year deal with Arsenal.
The Chile international looked destined for Manchester City until recently, with the Sky Blues appearing set to wrap up a move for around £20m having originally agreed a £60m fee with Arsenal last summer.
But United stole in with a late approach to secure the signing of Sanchez, who is set to earn a Premier League record of around £350,000 a week, on a four-and-a-half-year deal having allowed his Arsenal contract to run down to its final six months.
“I am thrilled to be joining the biggest club in the world,” Sanchez, who takes the club’s No.7 shirt, told Man Utd’s official website.
“I have spent three-and-a-half wonderful years at Arsenal and I bring with me very positive memories of that great club and its fans.
“The chance to play in this historic stadium and to work with Jose Mourinho was something I could not turn down. I am very proud to be the first Chilean player ever to play for United’s first team and I hope I can show our fans all around the world why the club wanted to bring me here.”
Despite signing for Manchester United and not their rivals City, Sanchez holds his former Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola in high esteem. He once said of the City manager: ‘Guardiola made me feel like a Ferrari.’
Also moving to Manchester will be his dogs Atom and Humber. Sanchez has created an Instagram account for his pooches and has taken them to training.
Mkhitaryan, who successfully sorted out his visa on Monday afternoon along with Sanchez, said it was a “dream” to play for the Gunners.
“I’m very happy that we could finish this deal and I’m very happy to be here,” the attacker told Arsenal’s official website.
“It’s a dream come true because I’ve always dreamed of playing for Arsenal. Now that I’m here, I’ll do my best for this club to create history.”
Arsenal coach Wenger added: “Henrikh is a very complete player. He creates chances, he defends well, he can absorb distances and he’s very committed as well. I must say he’s a player who has all the attributes.”
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