Manchester United 'Ready' to Give Alexis Sánchez Second Chance at Old Trafford
By Tom Gott
Dust off that old piano, because Manchester United are thought to be ready to bring Alexis Sánchez back for a second spell at the club.
The Chilean was shipped off on loan to Inter during the summer after a catastrophic 18 months at Old Trafford. After 60 goals in 122 Premier League games for Arsenal, Sanchez netted just five times in 45 appearances for United and never looked close to the player the Red Devils thought they were getting - which hurt even more as he was the club's highest earner.
There is no option to buy in his current loan contract, so Sánchez will be on the move again at the end of the season, but the Daily Star state that the forward will be brought back to Manchester for a 'second chance'.
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 anyway.
It is said that their plan is to welcome Sánchez 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.
It's a strange one. United didn't think he deserved a spot in the team this season, so they agreed to loan him out, and it's not like they will have been overly impressed with Sánchez's injury-hit start to the current campaign.
He has managed just seven appearances as he has battled injuries and a suspension, and he has only netted once in all competitions so far.
Given United are on the lookout for exciting young talent, bringing Sánchez back seems incredibly unlikely, especially since it is noted that the winger has no desire to return to Old Trafford anyway.
However, United do need some attacking reinforcements. Letting both Sánchez and Romelu Lukaku leave for Inter left the squad lacking depth in attack, and injuries to both Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford have left the Red Devils struggling at times.
Bringing Sánchez back is certainly an easy option, but the chances of seeing him playing that famous piano again seem pretty slim.
Speaking of 'slim', United have also been linked with a move for Leicester flop Islam Slimani to solve their striking crisis.