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Alexis Sanchez’s Recent Arsenal Success Much More Sustainable Than Last Year

By Josh Sippie

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Alexis Sanchez has burst on the scene lately. Well, re-burst, technically. He started this Arsenal season with no goals. Literally none. It took until the club visited the King Power Stadium for him to break out of his slump and tally 3. Not wanting to make it a one-off, he put up another 2 against Manchester United. Suddenly he is tied for third in the Premier League

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This looks distinctly similar to the Alexis Sanchez that we saw at the beginning of last season with Arsenal. But the differences are what makes this so much more wonderful.

Last year, Alexis Sanchez was without Olivier Giroud, Mesut Ozil and sporadically without Aaron Ramsey as well. he was on his own, creating on his own. There even came a point where he was in danger of being benched because Arsene Wenger did not like how much Alexis Sanchez slowed the attack. He was sitting on the ball. It was part of a complex he had developed that he had to do everything himself. Was it working? Sure, but there was no way it would lead to prolonged success, as we saw in the second half of the season.

Teams start to figure you out. If all of your runs look the same, they are going to anticipate. Being confined to the left side of the pitch, Alexis Sanchez’s creativity was hampered.

Related: Should Alexis Be Rewarded With Higher Wages?

Last season, Alexis lost a lot of possession for Arsenal. He averaged 2.3 unsuccessful touches and got dispossessed 3.5 times per 90 minutes played. In terms of lingering on the ball, Alexis Sanchez had an issue with this as well. He attempted 6 dribblers per 90, completing only 3.5 of them. Right there we see statistical evidence that Alexis Sanchez was trying to do too much.

But he did not really have a choice in it all. Regardless, it had to change.

Suddenly, it has. Against Manchester United, Alexis Sanchez managed only 44 touches in 90 minutes of play. 8 of the starting XI had more touches. Yet few, if any, can claim to have had a bigger impact on the game than Alexis Sanchez.

Related: Alexis Is A Gengar. What Are All The Rest?

The key comes with Alexis not dwelling on the ball so much. He is relying on his team mates. He is letting the ball find him instead of constantly having to direct the ball himself. Alexis Sanchez dribbles are down this year (5 per 90) and he only has 1.6 unsuccessful dribbles per 90. It is a small decrease for now, but if it becomes a trend, than Alexis Sanchez’s Arsenal success can be prolonged. 

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This is a wonderful sign. Obviously Alexis Sanchez is still capable and willing to create magic all on his own. But now that he does not have to do it that way every time he touches the ball, defenses cannot be so assured in their tactics. Not only that, but Alexis Sanchez’s pass completion is on the rise as well, as it now sits at 81% compared to 76% last year. This year, he is also averaging 10 more passes per 90.

An Alexis Sanchez that has team mates that are on the same level as him is much more fearful than an Alexis Sanchez that has to dance through defenders all by himself. This Alexis Sanchez that we have seen in the past three games can be sustained and is much more of a threat than last year’s Alexis Sanchez.

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