Being 35 years old has not stopped Alexis Sanchez playing a big part in a side destined for a title in one of Europe's biggest leagues, and for this, he deserves to be given his roses.
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The act of handing an individual roses or flowers is universally recognised as an acknowledgement of love and/or praise. It is an expressive way of showing them affection, and given the resurgence of Sanchez's career in recent seasons, the diminutive attacker deserves some.
Describing the winger's time at Manchester United as underwhelming would be an understatement. The Chile international arrived at Old Trafford as one of the best footballers in the Premier League, and while he was expected to be the player who bridged the gap between the Red Devils and their crosstown rivals Manchester City, he never came close to reaching the heights that many had expected of him. This caused a massive stain on the Tocopilla native's legacy and after his first full season with the record Premier League champions, he decided it was time to leave the club and return to Italy with Inter Milan.
Having fallen short of the enormous expectations placed upon him in England, many would have presumed that Sanchez was no longer capable of putting on world-class performances at major clubs, but that could not be further from the truth given his time with the Nerazzurri, sandwiched in between a stint at Olympique Marseille.
Why does Sanchez deserve his flowers?
For all that he achieved playing for Udinese, Barcelona and Arsenal, it is his post-United stint that has been tremendously impressive. It must be mentally taxing for a superstar to have such a drastic fall from grace playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world, but it does not seem to have affected him at all as he has only further proved what a legend he is. After leaving England, Sanchez joined Inter, then under Antonio Conte, to help end Juventus' stranglehold of the Serie A title when COVID-19 was still rife.
His injury struggles continued to hamper him when he first arrived at the San Siro in the 2019/20 season, but after recovering from foot damage, he would pick up form and prove that he was a player his Italian manager could count on when needed. The following campaign, Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez were the main protagonists in Inter's Serie A-winning campaign, but even when coming off the bench for a majority of that season, Sanchez illustrated his quality as a goalscoring threat.
He would stay at the club for one more season, 2021/22, before completing a free transfer to the south of France at the beginning of the 2022/23 campaign to play for Marseille. The previous three seasons at Inter, the South American played mostly a bit-part role, but at the Orange Velodrome he returned to being a team's talisman. At 34, he reverted to showing the confidence and goalscoring prowess that made him the main man earlier in his career at Udinese and the Gunners, managing to score 14 goals and provide three assists in Ligue 1 as he established himself among the best players in the division.
He had obviously had a big impact in a star-studded Barcelona side, and then established himself as one of the best players in the world when he was playing for the north Londoners. However, coming back in such a massive way, at that age, albeit in what many feel is a "lesser" league, just goes to show how good a player he is.
What's next for Sanchez?
The prolific winger is now back with La Beneamata and on the cusp of winning his second Scudetto after playing in France for a lone season. His contract at the Milan club does expire at the end of the season, though, so his next move will likely be at the forefront of his mind.
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Teams from Saudi Arabia are believed to be keen on landing the ex-River Plate man's signature, but any decision he does make on his future will likely come after the upcoming Copa America, which will be held in the United States of America. He will be hoping that tournament plays out like the last one that was played in north America did, when he and Chile grabbed their second continental title at Argentina's expense in 2016.
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