Arsenal: More fluent without Alexis Sanchez

With the departure of Alexis Sánchez, Arsenal lost a talented player who can change games in an instant. Without him, Arsenal is creating a new way of playing, something more akin to Arsenal teams of the past.

The departure of Alexis Sánchez forced Arsenal to change the way they play. So often, Sánchez was the narrow funnel in which the Gunners’ play flowed through. The club struggled early after Sánchez departed against the likes of Swansea, Tottenham and Manchester City and experienced a four-game losing streak.

Now, in the longest stretch of victories since Sánchez’s departure, they are piecing together a new way of playing. In a more egalitarian team, Arsenal plays with more continuity and fluency.

Sánchez was clearly the focal point for the past three and half years. The attack flowed through him, and his playing tendencies in some respects hindered other players on the team. He was a reluctant passer, only passing the ball if his teammate was in a scoring position, if he had the opportunity to receive a return pass or if the teammate he was passing to was Mesut Ozil.

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Sánchez is also an extremely direct player. When he receives the ball, he would stop the flow of possession and try to take on his defender or make an incisive pass, often successfully but sometimes unsuccessfully. Sánchez often forced the issue and even would go out of the way to pick the ball up in deeper positions. His antics and on-field demeanor also didn’t help.

Arsenal’s new focal point is Mesut Ozil. A passer at heart. A master assist maker, he reached 50 assists faster than anybody before. He doesn’t just give his teammates opportunities to score, but also opportunities to contribute to the overall buildup play.

The Gunners benefited from Ozil’s generosity on Thursday against AC Milan. There were periods when Arsenal dominated possession deep in AC Milan’s half for minutes at a time. Without Sánchez demanding the ball and his persistence to force the issue, Arsenal is able to get other players involved and control the tempo of the game.

Here, Arsenal keeps the ball for a two and a half-minute period leading to four dangerous opportunities.

Here, another long stretch of possession leading to Welbeck winning a penalty.

This more democratic style by Arsenal will benefit the general mood of the team, not only because Sánchez was not a locker room favorite. In any sport, when players feel involved, they perform better in all aspects of the game.

The main beneficiary will be Arsenal’s strikers. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang didn’t play with Sánchez, but Alexandre Lacazette and Danny Welbeck did, and they will enjoy more forward service from different areas of the pitch.

The three strikers are goalscorers in their own right, even Welbeck, and will benefit from a greater proportion of Arsenal’s chances landing at their feet. Before Sánchez, Arsenal’s attacks flowed through the striker, whether it was Nwankwo Kanu or Robin van Persie. Even Marouane Chamakh enjoyed success as a striker for a period of time and only struggled because of competition from van Persie.

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With talks of Sánchez’s recent struggles with Manchester United, it is easy to conclude that this club is better off without the Chilean. They are not necessarily better off, but they are changing the way they approach the game as old players are given new opportunities.