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It took just one training session for Alexis Sanchez to realise he had made a mistake leaving Arsenal to join Premier League rivals Manchester United.
Sanchez excited Arsenal fans for four years following his £32m move from Barcelona in 2014, scoring an impressive 80 goals in 166 games for the Gunners and lifting two FA Cup trophies at the Emirates Stadium.
The chance to join Manchester United, who had been the dominant force in English football for two decades, was too good to turn down and Sanchez arrived at Old Trafford in January 2018 in a swap deal with Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Sanchez was handed United’s iconic No. 7 shirt but he underwhelmed at the Theatre of Dreams, scoring five goals in 45 appearances before joining Inter Milan, initially on loan and then on a permanent transfer.
Looking back on his move to Manchester United, Sanchez said: ‘I accepted the opportunity to go to United. It felt tempting, and it was something good for me.
‘I liked this club a lot when I was a kid. Eventually, I signed, but I didn’t ask for information on what was happening inside the club.
‘Sometimes there are things that you don’t realise until you get there, and I remember the first training session I had, I realised a lot of things.
‘After the session I got home and I told my family and my agent, “Can you not rip up the contract to go back to Arsenal?” They laughed.
‘I told them there was something that didn’t sit right, it didn’t seem good. But I had already signed; I was already there.
‘After the first few months, I carried on having the same feeling. We weren’t united as a team in that moment.’
Sanchez also revealed his confidence took a huge hit when he was left out of the Manchester United squad by then-Old Trafford boss Jose Mourinho.
‘In a game with West Ham, I wasn’t picked,’ the Chile legend added. ‘That had never happened to me as a player.
‘It bothered me, and I said it couldn’t be possible. To go from being one of the best in the Premier League to not playing in five months.
‘I came to my house, and I was very sad. The next day, I trained in a double shift because I love what I do.’
Sanchez returned to his former club Udinese last summer on a two-year deal, but the 36-year-old has made just one appearance due to reoccurring injury problems.
While Sanchez flopped at Manchester United, he clearly impressed some of his team-mates on the training pitch, with Jesse Lingard among those to hail his ability.
Asked about the club’s lack of success with marquee signings, Lingard told the Diary of a CEO podcast: ‘I just think we didn’t click.
‘Of course, with Louis van Gaal we won the FA Cup, with Jose Mourinho the Europa League and Carabao Cup.
‘It’s strange, because a lot of players have come in and failed. Alexis in training [puffs out cheeks], top. Alexis Sanchez quality, in training he was quality.
‘Then it comes to a game and it just didn’t click for some reason. I don’t know why. Is it pressure?
‘When I was playing, especially with Rom and Alexis, we just wanted to enjoy our football. It’s always going to be hard to win the Prem when City have been so dominant for many years.
‘Even to win the Europa League, Carabao Cup, Community Shield, we’re winning trophies, but then when Jose left the trophies stopped.
‘And that’s difficult. Another new manager. You have to prove yourself over and over again.
‘It’s kind of like fake promises really. You’ll be told, “You’re doing well, you’ll play next game” and then don’t end up playing.’
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