JOSE Mourinho believes Alexis Sanchez will recover his form and fitness for Manchester United, but insists he had no input into the Chile forward’s decision to skip his country’s upcoming friendly internationals.
Chile manager Reinaldo Rueda claimed this week the United forward pulled out of games in Asia against Japan and South Korea on the explicit advice of the Old Trafford medical staff.
Sanchez suffered an unspecified training injury that ruled him out of United’s disappointing defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion two weeks ago. And he was only fit enough for a cameo appearance off the bench in an even more demoralising 3-0 home loss to Tottenham last week as United plunged into an early-season crisis.
Sanchez’s decision not to go away with Chile has met with Mourinho’s approval, although the United manager denied Rueda’s claims that the club pressured him to do so.
“I didn’t ask and I never ask players not to go,” said Mourinho.
“I never contact national teams for players not to go. It’s a personal thing between him and the national team manager.
“At the same time, coming from injury he feels that for him it is a much-needed two weeks off.
“He feels that after that (injury) he needs two weeks to get himself in good shape. And because they are friendly matches in Asia, they made the decision – for his good and by consequence for our own good – for him not to go.”
However, Sanchez has so far struggled to match the hype or the heights he achieved with former club Arsenal.
The 29-year-old has scored just three times in 20 appearances for Mourinho, but his manager still has faith that he will return to show supporters his true ability.
– AFP
