Chile forward Sanchez has struggled with injuries since joining from Arsenal in January last year but he has been disappointing when he has played.
He has scored only once in the league this season – in October – and once more in the FA Cup fourth-round win at Arsenal.
Overall, his five goals in all competitions in just over year is not the return that the club and fans were expecting, especially when you take his salary into account.
Signed on a four-and-a-half-year deal reported to be worth £14m a year, the 30-year-old is one of the highest paid players in the world.
Sanchez was widely criticised for his performance as a substitute in Manchester United‘s 2-0 home defeat by Paris St-Germain in Champions League last Tuesday.
But he could feature against Chelsea in the FA Cup fifth round on Monday night due to United’s injury problems.
Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard have both been ruled out with short-term problems sustained against PSG.
Asked if he thinks that Sanchez’s best days are behind him, Solskjaer said: “He’s still a young boy. He’s a man of 30, but he can still play for many, many years.
“We know there is a very good player there. It’s like the ketchup bottle” Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
“He’s been here for a year, I’ve been here for two months with him and he’s been injured for the first part of it so it’s unfair to just expect him to be at the top straight away. I’m sure we’ll see the best of him before the end of the season.
“He’s a very good player. He’s very talented, but of course there’s only so many things you can sit down and talk about and tweak.
“You saw against Fulham when he gets his chance – he is so sharp in and around the ball, he wins the ball, his energy. If he could just get that goal I’m sure that would release his confidence.
“That’s what it’s about when you go through periods when you don’t perform up to your standard because we know there is a very good player there. It’s one of those things.