Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has reportedly identified the replacement for their Chilean superstar striker, Alexis Sanchez, if he fails to agree to a new deal at the club. Sanchez, who is under contract with the club till 2018 earns £130,000 per week under the previous deal. The attacker has already made a demand of a salary of £200,000 per week and most significantly an inclusion of a release clause in his new contract if he is to sign one.
With only over a year to go on his new deal and the player yet to come to any understanding with the club there is a fear that Wenger might need to cash in on the player or else risk losing him on free when his contract expires. Keeping that scenario in mind, the Gunners manager has marked Borussia Dortmund attacker Marco Reus as the man to replace Sanchez.
Reus has been one of the most top players of Europe for some time now making a mark with his quality on numerous occasions on the pitch. Reus came to limelight first with Borussia Monchengladbach, a club he joined in 2009. Reus, made a considerable impact at the club despite his young age by scoring 36 goals and assisting 20 in 97 games in the Bundesliga while at Borussia Park.
It earned him a move to Borussia Dortmund in 2012 where he absolutely dazzled and became one of Europe’s best wide men of recent years.
Arsenal tried to sign Reus previously but he opted to remain with Dortmund and has now been a part of the BVB for over 4 years now. His efficiency in front of goal has increased tremendously during that time as the 27-year-old has scored a stunning 76 goals in 165 games for Dortmund in all competitions while assisting a further 36 goals. His stats prove how big an asset he is for his team and what he brings to the table. The fact that Reus is also very versatile adds more flavour to his gameplay.
The German is capable of playing across the midfield as well as a striker and with his tactical intelligence would fit right into the setup at Arsenal. In many ways, Reus would even be a better option than Sanchez to be fair as the German does hold the upper hand when it comes to decision making.
The only thing that is concerning, however, are his injury records. Since the last two years, Reus has continually suffered from bad injuries which saw him miss the World Cup 2014 in Brazil as well as the Euro Cup 2016 for his national team.
Arsene Wenger must be a bit concerned about the player on that front who has currently suffered yet another setback coming from a lengthy injury layoff. It would be certainly a risk to sign Reus with his current injury record but if Sanchez departs then it would be the risk the Gunners would need to take.
