Monday 25 May 2015

Wenger fears Sanchez may comeback with fatigue after Copa America

The 26-year-old's season began on June 13 at the World Cup and could end on July 4 at the Copa America, leaving the Gunners boss concerned

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says he fears for the health of Alexis Sanchez with the Chilean set to feature in this summer's "unreasonable" Copa America.

Sanchez has excelled in his debut campaign for the Gunners and will hope to add to his tally of 24 goals from 51 games when he faces Aston Villa in the FA Cup final on Saturday.

The 26-year-old was granted permission from Chile to feature in the final and join their Copa America squad at a later date for their opening game on June 11, but Wenger feels he could be left exhausted.

"I will watch but with a little bit of fear because Sanchez has played 50 games for us and goes there again, having already played in the World Cup last summer," he told reporters.

"You are a little bit concerned and I feel this competition is a bit too much. I am really surprised that Fifa authorised that.

"It's disappointing that they speak a lot about the health of the players but when you look at the competition that is organised, this Copa America, and look at the date of the start of the Premier League, it is not reasonable.

"Moving the fixture calendar forward deeply affects pre-season and I believe it is the wrong decision of the Premier League to start on August 8.

"The players have played the World Cup, then you have no winter break, you come out and when you reach the FA Cup Final, you play on May 30 and the European players called up by their international teams play until June 14.

"Then you start on August 8. If you count six weeks' preparation, where is the time for recovery?"

No comments:

Post a Comment