Arsenal news: Alexis Sanchez comes through Chile win to ease injury fears despite Arsene Wenger warning

Sanchez suffered a hamstring injury last week but despite initial fears ruling him out for six weeks, he played 84 minutes in the 3-1 victory over Uruguay on Tuesday night

Alexis Sanchez came through 84 minutes for Chile despite suffering an injury last week (Getty)

Alexis Sanchez defied Arsene Wenger’s advice and played in Chile’s 3-1 victory over Uruguay on Tuesday night, but the Arsenal manager will be delighted to see the forward come through the World Cup qualifier unscathed and score two goals in the process.

Wenger expressed his concerns of Sanchez injuring himself further if he played in Tuesday night’s match after suffering a tearing a muscle in his thigh last week, with initial fears ruling him out for up to six weeks.

That estimated time out was soon reduced to three weeks, but the player himself revealed he was determined to play in Chile’s final World Cup qualifier of the year, much to Wenger’s anger.

The Frenchman labelled any decision to play Sanchez “suicide” and feared the 27-year-old would do himself more harm than good, but it appears to be good news on the injury front as Sanchez came through 84 minutes in the win over Uruguay before being replaced by Nicolas Castillo when the match was won.

Wenger will also take heart from seeing Sanchez, who had heavy bandaging around his right thigh, continue his good form this season as he scored twice after Eduardo Vargas’s opener, with the victory lifting Chile up to fourth and an automatic qualification berth in the South American 2018 World Cup Qualifying table.

Sanchez had heavy strapping on his right thigh (Getty)

With Arsenal travelling to Manchester United on Friday ahead of their weekend Premier League encounter, Wenger will have to assess Sanchez’s fitness following a long-haul flight back to London that will see him arrive on Thursday, giving the Chilean just two days to prepare for the crunch clash.

Wenger and Sanchez have already clashed over his playing time and when he should be substituted, with Sanchez determined to play every match for the Gunners and remain on the pitch for the duration. The manager though has insisted he must show caution in playing Sanchez after relying on him too much last season, which led to Sanchez burning out and suffering injury when Wenger admitted he should have given him a rest.