‘I regretted joining Man Utd from Arsenal – I wanted to go back after one day’

Alexis Sánchez wanted to tear up his contract with Manchester United and return to Arsenal after his first Red Devils training in 2018.

The Chilean landed on English soil in 2014, joined the Gunners from Barcelona and immediately got to work. After an FA Cup win, accompanied by 25 goals in all competitions, he was named the club's Player of the Year in his debut season.

A slightly more disappointing second season was overshadowed by a 24-goal masterclass the following year, before Sánchez had to make a big decision in 2018. After developing into a key player for Arsene Wenger's side, there was no shortage of suitors for the star, who had attracted interest from both Manchester City and United.

After City decided to end their pursuit of the former Barcelona man, Sánchez opted to make the jump to Old Trafford, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan headed in the opposite direction. Many believed at the time that the transfer would pay off for Jose Mourinho's side, but the opposite happened, leaving Sánchez full of regrets after just one training session.

“I accepted the opportunity to go to United, it felt tempting and it was something good for me,” Sánchez admitted in 2020. He added: “I really liked this club when I was little. Eventually I signed, but I didn't ask for information about what was happening inside the club.

“Sometimes there are things you don't realize until you get there, and I remember realizing a lot of things during the first practice.

“After the session I came home and said to my family and my agent: 'Can't you tear up the contract and go back to Arsenal?' They laughed. I told them something was wrong, it didn't seem right.

“But I had already signed; I was already there. After the first few months I continued to have the same feeling. We were not united as a team at that time.”

With seven league goals to his name before the move, Sánchez would score just two more following his mid-season move, which also saw him lose the FA Cup final to Chelsea.

The subsequent campaign, however, was nothing short of a disaster. After failing to find the back of the net in the first six league games of the season, the Chilean was dropped for a trip to West Ham – a move by Mourinho that dented the striker's confidence.

“In a game with West Ham I wasn't picked,” Sánchez added. “That had never happened to me as a player. It bothered me and I said it wasn't 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 was very sad. The next day I trained double shifts because I like what I do.”

Additional training would not help. Sanchez scored just two goals in all competitions that season, hampered by a hamstring injury. After a move to Italy the following season, he made the permanent move to Inter Milan in 2020.

Sánchez would stay in Milan until 2022 and return to Marseille in 2023 after a one-year spell. He now plies his trade at Udinese, a far cry from the heights he reached in north London.