Pain in the Arsenal
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Alexis Sanchez primed for another season of overwork at Arsenal

By Josh Sippie

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Last season, Arsenal got off to an abysmal start. Olivier Giroud got hurt, Mesut Ozil got hurt and Aaron Ramsey followed suit, leaving Alexis Sanchez fresh into his new side having to do literally everything for the team lest they crumble and fall. He was the only splotch of mortar holding all the bricks together.

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That is tiring work.

Alexis has the best work rate and dedication of anyone out there. He trains when he is supposed to be on vacation, he trains on off days, and I would not be surprised to learn that he has conditioned his body to train while he sleeps. For that reason, you will never see Alexis Sanchez want out of a game, nor will you see him taking short cuts.

But the fact remains that as much as Alexis Sanchez has tried to engineer himself into a living battery, he is still a human being and human beings get exhausted.

Last season displayed it first hand. After carrying the team on his back for the first half of the season, he tailed off in the second half. That was partially due to the fact that Giroud, Ozil and Ramsey returned, but it was also due to the undeniable fact that he got tired and even sustained an injury.

This season was supposed to be different. Everyone is/was healthy and Arsenal decimated opponents in the preseason. And yet the team is flailing to get anything going. Nobody will take the lack of success more seriously than Alexis Sanchez. Arsene Wenger has already said he has trouble sitting Alexis, good luck ever giving him a rest now.

To a certain extent, you like to see that in a guy. Alexis is going to step up his play in the next couple of matches, he is going to take the team by the scruff and do everything he can to secure points but just like last year, he cannot do it alone. He may be able to keep the team afloat by himself, but he cannot win the league by himself. The problem is that he will most certainly try.

Arsene Wenger has indicated that he thinks Alexis Sanchez is at the same level as Luis Suarez, via ESPNFC, and to a certain extent, you have to believe him. There are two guys at Arsenal that can change the flow of the game all by themselves: Alexis Sanchez and Aaron Ramsey. Ramsey can be erratic at times but when he is on point, he is daunting.

Alexis Sanchez is not erratic, he is a bonafide world-class leader and this team needs him. He influences games more emphatically than anyone else in the league (do not give me that ‘Eden Hazard’ bull). I will restate, though, that he cannot do it alone. And again, he is going to try.

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Wenger had bouts with having to leave Alexis out of the squad last year because he was trying to do too much. Essentially, at the time, he had to do too much because no one else was. The same is coming to fruition this season and if Arsenal do not get their ducks sorted out soon, Alexis Sanchez is going to put on his Power Rangers outfit and start busting skulls all on his own.

The good news is it will whip everyone into shape and could kick start the team.

The bad news is that he will get exhausted, but Alexis Sanchez does not merely sit for exhaustion, he tries to beat it by fighting harder and gets more exhausted.

Newcastle is a huge test. Arsenal need a dominant team victory.

Next: Do Arsenal want Ozil to be more selfish?

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