Arturo Vidal confirms Bayern Munich interest in Arsenal midfielder Alexis Sanchez

Arturo Vidal has made a strong plea for Alexis Sanchez to join him at Bayern Munich and also confirmed that the Bundesliga club have contacted him asking about his compatriot.

Sanchez will enter the final year of his contract with Arsenal this summer and is yet to give an indication with regard to his future plans after refusing to commit his future to the club. The Chile international recently revealed that he is happy in London but remains frustrated at the Gunners' inability to mount a sustained challenge in the Premier League and Champions League.

Arsene Wenger is hopeful of keeping the former Barcelona attacker at the Emirates Stadium, but with Arsenal failing to qualify for the Champions League next season, he is likely to face an uphill battle to convince Sanchez to stay. Vidal believes a move to Bayern will be perfect for his countryman to take his game to the next level, as he believes the north London club are not as strong as the best in Europe at the moment.

"When [Bayern] have asked me, I have always said that he is the player that has to be here," Vidal told Spanish publication Sport, as quoted by the London Evening Standard.

"He has a year left on his contract. Everybody wants him because it is easier to pay that money now than if he had three years left. Let's hope he makes the right choice for him and for Chile too, because he is a player that helps us a lot.

"Of course I would like to him to come because he is an extraordinary player. He is doing great at Arsenal but I think he needs to take an extra step to fight amongst the best in the world and that is why he has to come to the best team in the world," the Chile midfielder explained.

"He would do great here. He is a player that trains hard, who has a lot of talent and who is still young. We hope he will get the chance to come here because if he comes he will show all his talent.

"[Arsenal] aren't as strong as the other big teams around right now, if Alexis wants to measure up against the rest he needs to come here where the strongest players are," he added.

Sanchez has had his best season in England in terms of goals and assists – 29 goals and 19 assists in 50 games in all competitions – and the uncertainty surrounding his contract situation has attracted a number of suitors.

Apart from Bayern, Arsenal's Premier League rivals, Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea have also been credited with interest. It remains to be seen if Arsenal will allow him to run down his contract and leave on a free next summer if he fails to extend or cash in on their most prolific player in the last three seasons.