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Inter Milan forward Alexis Sanchez will reportedly be out for around three months after he underwent surgery on a dislocated ankle.

In a statement on Inter's official website, the club confirmed that after consultation with Dr Ramon Cugat in Barcelona, Sanchez had an operation on his left ankle on Wednesday afternoon to address the injury he suffered while on international duty with Chile.

The club said the procedure "went exactly as planned."

According to Goal, the surgery will keep him out of action for three months, so he won't feature again until 2020.

Sanchez joined Inter on loan from Manchester United in the summer, with the Italian club paying a quarter of his £400,000 basic weekly wage.

Opta's Duncan Alexander put his earnings in perspective:

The 30-year-old had only made four appearances for Inter since his arrival.

After brief cameos against Udinese and Lazio, he made his first start for Inter against Sampdoria at the end of September.

It was an eventful full debut, as he scored two goals—albeit the latter has since been given to Stefano Sensi—and was then sent off less than a minute into the second half with a second yellow card for simulation:

Sanchez missed Inter's next Serie A game as they lost 2-1 to Juventus, but he was able to feature against former club Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League.

He set up Lautaro Martinez in the second minute, and sports writer Andy West praised his performance:

Despite his efforts, Barca came back to win the game 2-1.

His sending off aside, it had been a promising start to his Inter career after a dismal spell at Old Trafford in which he scored just five goals in 18 months.

A lengthy lay-off will be a significant setback in his attempts to reignite his career, while Inter will also be without a first-team forward, so it's imperative Martinez and Romelu Lukaku remain fit in the meantime.