Alexis Sanchez joined his Chile team-mates in training just days after suffering an ankle injury as La Roja prepare for their crucial World Cup qualifier in Argentina.
The Arsenal forward limped off in the closing minutes of his side’s 3-1 defeat at West Brom on Saturday after suffering an injury in the first half that his manager Arsene Wenger said had left his ankle in a “terrible state”.
However Sanchez has rarely been one to eschew the demands of his country and has proven his willingness to play through the pain barrier on countless occasions for both Chile and Arsenal.
Wenger had feared his top scorer had suffered ligament damage in the challenge by West Brom winger James McClean but it now seems likely that Sanchez’s injury was less severe.
In Pictures | West Brom vs Arsenal | 18/03/2017
Sanchez did not join the Chile squad for training on Monday but was back with Juan Antonio Pizzi’s squad on Tuesday. He did not appear to be bearing any signs of strapping to protect the injury and reports in his homeland suggest he is going through his sessions at full pelt.
Posting on Instagram yesterday Sanchez vowed to do exactly that, captioning a photo of himself in Chile colours with the phrase: “The only failure is not to try”.
Chile travel to Buenos Aires leading their hosts by just a point in the battle for the fourth and final guaranteed spot at the 2018 World Cup and with Colombia lurking close behind.
