‘Decision to let him go was lunacy’ – BBC pundit blasts Man Utd and Solskjaer over key decision

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BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton has hit out at Man Utd’s decision to let Alexis Sanchez leave as he believes that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is now short of options.

The Red Devils have had a mixed start to the Premier League season, but they now have a smaller squad than the one which started the campaign after the exits of Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez to join Inter.

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Solskjaer has made it clear that his intention is to rebuild the squad with young, hungry players, as reflected in the signings of Daniel James, Harry Maguire and Aaron Wan-Bissaka this past summer as well as the likes of Scott McTominay, Andreas Pereira and Mason Greenwood getting playing time.

However, Sutton believes that Man Utd have potentially taken a major gamble by letting Sanchez go in particular as he has cited the risk of injuries leaving them dangerously short in attack if the likes of Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford are sidelined.

It’s difficult to disagree with him on this occasion, as although many may argue that Solskjaer has done the right thing by trimming the squad and offloading players that weren’t performing, with no players coming in to fill those voids, it’s a dangerous balancing act.

There’s a similar situation in midfield with Ander Herrera leaving on a free transfer to join Paris Saint-Germain, and with no midfield signing to come in and replace what he provided the team, question marks will be asked as to whether or not Man Utd have a stronger or weaker squad than last season.

After a win over Chelsea and a draw away at Wolves, they’ve suffered a defeat to Crystal Palace and been held by Southampton.

That will be a concern over the international break, and especially with other competitions yet to start, Sutton’s concerns could become more prominent over the coming months.

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