Ole-Gunnar Solskjaer has claimed Alexis Sanchez will “love it” if the Arsenal fans “turn against him” at Emirates Stadium on Friday night.
The Manchester United manager confirmed the former Gunners forward will play in the FA Cup fourth round clash as the two giants go head to head in the tie of the round.
Speaking at his media briefing on Thursday morning, as quoted by the Daily Mirror’s live blog (9.02am), Solskjaer said: “He’ll be involved. I think he’ll love it if the crowd turn against him.
“As a player, pride kicks in and you think ‘I’ll show all of you’. He’s been fantastic in training, his attitude has been spot on so hopefully he’ll enjoy the game.”
The Red Devils have been paired with Unai Emery’s side in the fourth round of the competition, with Alexis due to face the Gunners at their home ground for the first time since joining United.
Indeed, in the last meeting between the two at Emirates Stadium, Alexis featured for Arsenal in the 3-1 defeat, with David de Gea pulling off a number of miraculous saves to deny the hosts.
Alexis has failed to find the sort of form that convinced United to take him to Old Trafford in a swap deal involving Henrikh Mkhitaryan back in January 2018, with the 30-year-old having scored just four goals in all competitions.
He has, however, been struggling with injury over the last couple of months and has made just one start since November as he featured in the FA Cup third-round win over Reading.