Alexis Sanchez finally returned to training with Arsenal on Tuesday amid persistent speculation the Chile forward is keen to leave the Gunners.

Sanchez missed Arsenal’s pre-season tour of Australia and China, as well as last weekend’s Emirates Cup tournament, as he rested following international duty at the Confederations Cup.

The 28-year-old was due to resume training with his Arsenal team-mates on Sunday, but he was unable to fly back to London until Tuesday after going down with the flu.

Some cynical Arsenal fans feared Sanchez’s illness was a ruse to further distance himself from the Premier League club as he weighs up whether to push for a transfer.

Sanchez is in the final year of his Arsenal contract and his decision not to accept boss Arsene Wenger’s offer of a lucrative new deal has sparked interest from Manchester City, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Juventus.