Source: Daily_Mail
Manchester City and United snub as Alexis Sanchez chooses Barcelona
ShareAlexis Sanchez has delivered a crushing blow to both sides of Manchester after it emerged the in-demand Chile forward will sign for Barcelona. [LNB]Sanchez, who plays for Udinese, is close to joining the Spanish and European champions, but needs to travel to Spain in order to finalise a deal.[LNB]Chile coach Claudio Borghi will allow his star forward to leave the national team's training camp ahead of the Copa America to sign for the club.[LNB] International class: Alexis Sanchez is to leave the Chile squad to sign for Barcelona[LNB]Borghi says Chile have no option but to allow the 22-year-old to fly to Spain as they could otherwise be liable to cover the cost of the transfer, reported to be around ?27million, if Sanchez suffers a serious injury while on international duty.[LNB]'It's a very complicated matter,' he said on national TV. 'If we don't allow him to travel, and the sale goes through, we would be accountable for 45 million dollars in the event of anything happening to him.[LNB] Wing wizard: Udinese have been inundated with offers for the Chilean[LNB]'It's very simple. As soon as the confirmation of his transfer comes through, he will have the authorisation (to travel).'[LNB]Chile are currently preparing for the Copa America, which starts on July 1, and Borghi says Sanchez will not be able to travel during the tournament.[LNB] 'If it happens in the middle of the Copa America, obviously not, but we have time and we know we cannot be responsible for that amount of money, so the ideal situation would be for him to travel and sign when the deal is confirmed,' he said.[LNB] Star man: Sanchez was one of the outstanding players in Serie A last season[LNB]Borghi believes Sanchez is good enough to play for any side and reckons the youngster is remaining calm during the negotiations between Udinese and Barca.[LNB]'We have spoken about this possibility he has,' Borghi said. 'It's not easy. He's 22 and his transfer costs a lot of money, but he is ready to play anywhere.[LNB] Team-mates: Sanchez's imminent arrival comes a year after Barca spent ?40m on David Villa[LNB]'He is training to be the best. He has a little bit of anxiety but that will surely come to an end when he signs the contract.' [LNB]The deal has not been finalised yet, though, and Udinese have warned Barca they must increase their previous offer if they are to acquire Sanchez.[LNB]'We are still far from reaching an agreement,' Udinese owner Gianpaolo Pozzo said to Gazzetta dello Sport. 'Sanchez is still a Udinese player.[LNB]'Barcelona have made more than one offer. The real market value of Sanchez is a minimum 50million euros but seeing as we are not Inter Milan or Real Madrid but a small club, in the end, we may have to settle for less.[LNB]'Let us just say that the price is 50million euros negotiable. You can only hope that the right price comes along and the right price has yet to arrive.[LNB]'The offer of Barcelona is not the right price and everyone knows that - Barcelona and all the other big clubs.'[LNB]Sanchez, who is under contract with Udinese until June 2014, scored 12 goals last term to help the Bianconeri qualify for the Champions League next season.[LNB]'We wanted to keep Sanchez for a further year,' Pozzo said. 'This was my original idea but I have to accept that we are not a big club in Europe.[LNB]'Hence, if big clubs in Europe have their eyes set on a player, we cannot do anything.'[LNB]P.S At least we won't be seeing this in the Premier League....[LNB][LNB][related][LNB] Explore more:Places: Manchester, Barcelona, Spain, Chile, Europe
