Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has said the club is ready to give Chilean international Alexis Sanchez another chance at Old Trafford. According to United gaffer, the forward can still return to his best when he comes back from his loan spell at Inter Milan next summer.
Sanchez joined United from Arsenal in 2018 in a swap deal involving Henrikh Mkhitaryan. After a disastrous 18 months at Old Trafford, he was loaned out to Inter Milan. After 60 goals in 122 Premier League games for Arsenal, Sanchez netted just five times in 45 appearances for United and has played just 214 minutes of football in Italy due to a serious ankle injury.
During his 18 months at Old Trafford, United have spent a total of £23.4m on his £300,000-a-week wages and they are still paying half of his wages while he is on loan at the San Siro, meaning he has cost the club an exorbitant £27.3m in total.
Sanchez still has two years left on his contract when he returns to Old Trafford in the summer, and United are expected to try and negotiate a permanent move away. Executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has supposedly told Sánchez’s agents that United will ‘recall’ him from his loan in June – despite the fact that his contract in Italy expires that month.
It is said that their plan is to welcome Sanchez back into the fold at Old Trafford and bring him on their pre-season tour, in the hope that he will be able to earn a spot in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s squad for the 2020/21 campaign.
But speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Solskjaer claimed that Sanchez would prove his doubters wrong when he returns to the club next season.
He said: “Alexis will come back in the summer and will prove you all wrong.
“I can’t remember how many good ‘uns we’ve brought in and good deals in January.
“Henrik (Larsson) was good, Nemanja (Vidic) and Patrice (Evra), I’m talking about. It’s very hard.
“The clubs don’t want to lose their best players. If there is something out there, the club is pursuing that and it’s difficult.”
