Wenger - Alexis is a credit to Chile

Arsene Wenger has hailed Alexis Sanchez as a “credit to Chile”.

The 26-year-old has had a fine first season in England, scoring 19 goals in 39 appearances for Arsenal.

Ahead of Chile’s friendly with Brazil at Emirates Stadium on March 29, Wenger praised the South American forward for his incredible impact.

“We are very happy with him - he is a credit [to Chile] because he shows qualities that I hope you all have in your country,” the manager said. “He is committed, ready for a fight and has a huge desire to win and of course he is an exceptional player.

“You know what you want when you are a manager; that a player develops and expresses his quality and meets his needs in the way you play football and the way he can achieve his targets.

“I believe he is extremely focused, he is happy to play and what I expect him to continue to develop as a player and become even stronger.”

Alexis is on course for the most prolific season of his career, and Wenger believes that is down to a number of different factors.

“That is linked with ability, technique and work in training, and confidence as well,” he said. “Maybe with the position as well, because when the right footed play on the left, when he comes inside he has a chance to score.

“When he plays on the right [because] he is right footed, he is less in a position where he can score because he has better angles on the left. Also because maybe we play very attacking football and he gets better opportunities to score.”