Sanchez is entering a make or break period at Man United

By Ryan Conway

When Alexis Sanchez’s introduction video went viral on social media Manchester United hopes were high. The magnitude of the transfer has since faded, and the Chilean striker remains the picture of frustration. A 1-1 home draw with Wolves was the latest of a list of disappointing performances.

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“Mourinho is still building his squad, thus there must be failed experiments.”

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The memories of peak Sanchez will afford the forward some time though a return of just two goals in 17 Premier League performances is hard to ignore. Even his creative spark has gone at Old Trafford. The Chilean has four to his name.

A toxic atmosphere at former employers Arsenal was the root cause of the 29-year-old’s uninterested nature before the switch to Manchester. That landscape is yet to change.

When at his best for Arsene Wenger, Sanchez was a lightening bolt in the team. The direct and aggressive forward, capable of the sublime in an instant, carried the Gunners at times. In his final full season at the Emirates, the former Barcelona striker netted an extra-time winner against Manchester City in the F.A. Cup semi-final and opened the scoring against Chelsea in the final. Under Jose Mourinho those decisive impacts have evaporated.

Mourinho is still building his squad, thus there must be failed experiments.

The Portuguese’s deployment of the January signing has not produced the desired results yet. Romelu Lukaku is firmly entrenched as the starting striker, a role where Sanchez had great success with Arsenal. While Lukaku is comfortable operating out wide, in the former Chelsea manager’s system he is their focal point and there is little chance the £90 million forward is benched.

His fading influence on his team is evident. In his 333 minutes played this season Sanchez has failed to score and has registered just one assist. A return of two goals and four assists in his 17 Premier League appearances, 16 of them starts, for United is disappointing. From August to January before his transfer, the Chilean contributed seven goals and three assists. Regardless of how motivated Sanchez was while in London he remained a big contributor.

Sanchez’s lack of participation at the World Cup allowed for him to be fresh, which would be a potential ace in the hole during the early season. Instead the forward looks sluggish and unable to find any rhythm.

With Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford’s playing time limited since January, questions will be asked about the 29-year-old’s inclusion in the team. Rashford’s emergence under Louis van Gaal saw United unearth another star from their academy, the handling of him under Mourinho has been uncertain in some cases.

With Martial, headlines of a fallout and thus relegation to the bench, or even absence from the squad, refuse to go away. If Rashford’s relationship with Mourinho was to go the same way, while an underperforming big-money transfer remained in the side,it  would send shockwaves around Old Trafford.

The hype and feel-good factor of his musical arrival in Manchester is gone. They have been replaced by flailing arms and head shakes. So far all Sanchez has hit is bum notes in an underwhelming anti-climax.