Danny Murphy says Alexis Sanchez would have chosen Liverpool over Arsenal now

Sanchez is currently in his final year of contract at Arsenal.

Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy believes Alexis Sanchez would choose to join the Reds over Arsenal if given a choice at this juncture. The north London club are without Champions League football for the first time in decades after being pipped to the fourth spot by the Reds last season while the Chilean is refusing to sign a contract after entering his final year at the Emirates.

Sanchez has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester City who are reportedly willing to pay up to £70m($90m) for his services before the end of the summer. City boss Pep Guardiola will pursue Sanchez to the final day of the summer transfer window, despite Arsenal insisting that they will not sell the Chile international for any price.

Paris Saint-Germain have also been linked with a move for the 28-year-old, but he is reported to prefer a move to the Etihad Stadium to reunite with the Spaniard. Sanchez played one season under Guardiola at Barcelona, with the pair winning one Copa del Rey together at the Nou Camp.

Murphy believes that the Gunners have lost the pull that they enjoyed in previous seasons with their participation in Europe's top flight and that Anfield would be a better prospect for anyone who is looking for new challenges.

"When Alexis Sanchez had the choice in 2014, he decided to join Arsenal ahead of Liverpool. If he had those options again today, there is a good chance he would go the other way," Murphy told The London Evening Standard. "Look at Liverpool in 2017. They are in the Champions League. They have increased the capacity of Anfield to 54,000 and there are outline plans to take it to 60,000, similar to Emirates Stadium."

"Jurgen Klopp is now settled in the manager's job. He is very charismatic and might be more of a draw than Brendan Rodgers was. Brendan did well at Liverpool but Klopp won two Bundesliga titles and reached a Champions League Final with Borussia Dortmund.

"Liverpool seem to be on the way up, whereas I feel Arsenal are on a plateau — and if they lose Sanchez before the transfer window closes next Thursday, they will find themselves in an incredibly difficult position," he added.