Micah Richards Admits Huge Mistake With Prediction For Premier League Star's Transfer, Says Player 'Became A Laughing Stock'

Micah Richards has insisted that Alexis Sanchez “became a laughing stock” at Manchester United after wrongfully predicting the former Arsenal star would succeed at Old Trafford.

Sanchez arrived at the Gunners in 2014 in a £31.7m deal from Barcelona, with the United flop thriving under legendary former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.

The 32-year-old Chilean forward, who won two FA Cups with the Gunners, scored an impressive 80 times in 166 appearances during his four seasons in north London.

Sanchez was heavily linked with Manchester City in 2018, but the Premier League club opted against the transfer due to his wage demands.

The Red Devils secured their transfer for Sanchez in a swap deal that saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan head to the Emirates.

PA

However, Sanchez endured an ill-fated spell at Old Trafford and only managed to score five times in 45 appearances for United.

Sky Sports pundit Richards admitted that he was initially “sad” when Sanchez moved to United, saying the Chile international was “quality” at Arsenal.

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“He became a laughing stock at Manchester United,” he said on BBC’s Match of the Day: Top 10 podcast.

“At Arsenal he was quality and he worked hard. He had skill and creativity. He was a go-to man.

“It was sad when he went to United because I thought it was going to be a great move for him.”

PA

United initially loaned Sanchez to Inter Milan in 2019 before he made the move permanent to the San Siro in 2020.

The Inter player made 38 appearances and scored seven times en route to Inter capturing the Serie A title.

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Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker praised Sanchez for his time at Arsenal, but admitted that it “didn’t really work” out for him at United.

“He was such a good player for Arsenal. Everyone thought he was going to Manchester City, then no, Manchester United sneaked in and nicked him. But it didn’t really work,” he said.

“He was a great player but it didn’t quite happen for him. It is weird how you can be so good at one club, but it not happen at another.”

Topics: Micah Richards, Premier League, England, Manchester United, Football, Alexis Sanchez

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

@AdnanRiaz9