The Guardian (London), UK
 Tuesday 1:30 PM GMT


Alexis Sánchez move to Manchester United may hinge on Henrikh Mkhitaryan

· Armenian yet to decide on possible move to Emirates · Mkhitaryan and
Arsenal yet to have talks on any deal

by Jamie Jackson


Manchester United's hopes of buying Arsenal's Alexis Sánchez may
recede should Henrikh Mkhitaryan not wish move to the north London
club, with the Armenian carefully weighing up his options before a
possible move from Old Trafford.

Related: Manchester United spending a fortune to get Alexis Sánchez at
29 makes sense

There has as not yet been contact between Mkhitaryan and Arsenal
regarding his terms and potentially moving to the Emirates. It is
understood Mkhitaryan does not view himself as a makeweight in any
deal that would take Sánchez to United. Instead, the forward believes
he is the key to United being able to purchase the Chilean.

United's prospective terms are thought to include Mkhitaryan being
part of Sanchez's transfer but the 28-year-old is in no particular
rush to depart and would countenance remaining at the club.

Should he opt to do so, this would leave United having to decide
whether they wish to finance Sánchez's transfer without the sum of
around £30m they would have received from Mkhitaryan's sale. When
Sánchez's signing-on fee plus that of his agent's are factored in this
would mean United having to pay around £60m for a player who is out of
contract at Arsenal in the summer.

There is also the question of whether Arsène Wenger would allow
Sánchez to leave it he did not have Mkhitaryan as his replacement,
though Arsenal's manager is also pursuing Borussia Dortmund's
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.