Arsene Wenger's miserable start to the new year took a turn for the worse as his Arsenal side - missing wantaway forward Alexis Sanchez - lost 2-1 at struggling Bournemouth in a game he admitted they "had to win". Hector Bellerin put Arsenal ahead shortly after half-time but Eddie Howe's side mounted an impressive comeback, scoring twice in five minutes through Callum Wilson and Jordon Ibe.
Defeat leaves Arsenal in sixth place, five points off the top four ahead of Liverpool's clash with Manchester City later on Sunday, and without a win in five games in all competitions while Bournemouth moved four points clear of the bottom three. And while Wenger wrestles with problems on the field, the off-the-pitch saga involving Sanchez is adding to his concerns, with the manager admitting that continuing uncertainty surrounding the striker's future was the reason he was omitted.
"Half in half out, you never know this kind of situation during the transfer period," he said after the match. "That is why I decided to focus on the game." Sanchez, who is in the final year of his contract, has been a long-term target for Manchester City and was expected to move to the Etihad Stadium in a £60 million ($82 million, 67 million euros) transfer on the final day of the last transfer window had Arsenal completed a deal for Monaco's Thomas Lemar.
City remained favourites to sign the Chile international this month until Manchester United expressed their interest last week. The Old Trafford club's willingness to meet Arsenal's £35 million valuation of Sanchez, who can leave as a free agent at the end of the campaign, together with the possibility of offering one-time Arsenal target Henrikh Mkhitaryan as part of any deal, have increased the chance of the forward joining Jose Mourinho's squad.