It’s a lie! Guardiola denies calling Sanchez to convince him to join Man City

The Chilean hit a hat-trick to inspire the Gunners to a 5-1 victory over West Ham before reports suggested the Spanish coach made contact with his former player

Pep Guardiola has rejected reports that he has reached out to Alexis Sanchez in a bid to convince the Arsenal star to join him at Manchester City.

The Spanish manager insists the journalist responsible, from Chilean publication El Mercurio, is a liar.

“The journalist is a liar. He’s a liar,” Guardiola responded in his pre-match press-conference.

The former Barcelona ace struck a hat-trick to lift the Gunners up to second in the Premier League table, though there has been no progress on discussions to extend his stay at the Emirates.

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His current deal runs out in 2018 and the initial report from Chile suggested Pep had spoken with the player on at least two occasions.

Sanchez has been in blistering form for Arsene Wenger’s side this term after being shifted into a centre-forward role.

Sanchez has scored 11 goals already this term, to tie Diego Costa for top goal scorer in the league, and has added a further five assists to emerge as a front-runner for PFA Player of the Year.

Since leaving the Camp Nou in 2014, Sanchez has won the FA Cup with the Gunners and also inspired Chile to two Copa America triumphs and may be tempted to join Guardiola should Arsenal not assemble the right pieces to challenge for top honours.