The Chile captain and Inter star has picked up a knock that may be serious enough to keep him out of the showpiece clash against rivals AC Milan
Inter star Alexis Sanchez is facing a race against time to be fit for Saturday’s derby against AC Milan, Goal can confirm.
The former Arsenal and Manchester United star picked up a muscular injury during the international break.
The Chile captain managed to complete his nation’s fixture against Colombia on Wednesday but sustained a problem that puts his presence for the big Serie A clash under question.
He will return to Appiano Gentile on Friday, where he will be given a number of tests before a definitive judgement on his problem is passed, but Inter are optimistic that it will not prove to be anything too significant.
If he was to miss out, it would be a major blow to the Nerazzurri as he has rapidly established himself as a key member of Antonio Conte’s squad.
He finished the 2019-20 season at a tremendous pace, scoring three goals and creating seven more in the club’s 12 post-lockdown fixtures despite starting only eight times, while he has begun the 2020-21 campaign in similarly impressive form.
The attacker may not have been on the scoresheet for Inter to date, but he created goals in the 4-3 win over Fiorentina and the 5-2 success over Benevento.
Sanchez, however, was back on the goal trail with Chile, who he captained in their opening two World Cup qualifying matches.
He scored his 43rd international goal in the 2-1 defeat away against Uruguay – a game in which Chile conceded the decisive strike deep into second-half stoppage-time – before he was on target again versus Colombia in what was his 133rd outing for La Roja.
For the 31-year-old, it represents a welcome return to form after a difficult 18-month period with Manchester United, where he scored only three goals in 32 Premier League outings for the Old Trafford side as he spent much of his time battling hamstring and knee problems.
He has previously turned out with Cobreloa, Udinese, Barcelona and Arsenal during his professional career, as well as loan spells at Colo-Colo and River Plate. Indeed, his move to Inter was initially undertaken on a temporary basis before being made permanent on August 6 for free.
