Alexis Sanchez looks distracted at Arsenal, says Gary Neville

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Alexis Sanchez has lost his focus and become distracted at Arsenal following speculation over his future at the club, Gary Neville has said.

The Chilean, whose Arsenal contract expires at the end of the current season, was repeatedly linked with a move to Manchester City this summer amid reports he was eager to leave the Emirates.

Arsene Wenger made it clear that Sanchez would not be sold to a Premier League rival, as Robin van Persie was in 2015, but Neville believes that the player has looked “distracted” in recent months.

"Sanchez has been distracted at Arsenal for the last six months," the former Manchester United defender said.

"His career at Arsenal, I couldn't say a bad word about him until two or three months before the end of last season. I did feel he became distracted. Let's see how he performs this season at Arsenal.

"Ultimately he is still building up his fitness, he's still not in the team.

"What I saw from Arsenal [against Chelsea] on Sunday was a performance that I liked, and I've not said that too often about them in big games over the last four or five years. Sanchez wasn't on the pitch; Alex Iwobi and Danny Welbeck were playing [up front].

"What it showed for Arsenal on Sunday was that if you get players who work together and stick to a game plan, you can perform, sometimes better than with players who have got more talent.

"Sanchez has always been a hard worker. He needs to get back to doing that for Arsenal first because they've got big games coming up."

With no signs of a contract renewal on the cards, Sanchez is poised to leave the club on a free transfer in nine months and Old Trafford has already been touted as a potential destination.

And Neville has insisted that United should be challenging to land players of Sanchez's calibre.

"I’ve not seen the Alexis Sanchez news, so you have given me something I haven’t heard before, but, from that point of view, United, from a general perspective, should always be challenging for the best players in the world and bringing them in."