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Arsenal: Alexis Sanchez’s Shift Opening Doors
Sanchez’s and particularly Arsenal’s form has seen an upturn in recent weeks. Could it partly be down to a tactical alteration on the wings?
In the aftermath of Arsenal’s stunning win over Watford, many positives surfaced as a result: Elneny’s development, Iwobi’s remarkable rise, Welbeck’s positional awareness (just to name a few). But something that not many pundits or fans have touched on is the reason for Alexis Sanchez’s ascending performance levels.
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In Arsenal’s last three matches (against Barcelona, Everton and Watford) Sanchez has been shifted from the left wing to the right wing. This may seem like only a minor adjustment but Arsenal have reaped the rewards.
Not only has this switch seen Iwobi come into Arsenal and perform remarkably well on the left wing. It has also got the best out of our star Chilean. It’s been no secret that Alexis has under-performed this season, especially considering last season’s heroics. Many blame it on his mid-season injury but considering he returned from the sidelines in January and has only now hit a purple patch, it was obviously something different.
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Luckily, Le Prof spotted it and Arsenal have greatly benefited as a result. With Alexis on the right, he has been involved in five goals in his last four games (two goals, three assists). Along with obvious improved individual displays, it seems that he is linking up better with his team mates as well. His positional adjustment has rekindled the Ozil-Alexis partnership which has been so fruitful in the past but has looked rather dry at some points this season.
In addition to this, Sanchez has forged some sort of a new understanding with Egyptian Mohamed Elneny, which has seen them on the same wavelength. The trio of Ozil, Elneny and Sanchez caused Watford all sorts of problems on Saturday and Wenger will be hoping that their relationship can blossom even further in Arsenal’s coming weeks.
The last combination that Sanchez’s positional move has bettered is that between winger and fullback. The connection between Bellerin and Sanchez in Arsenal’s last game was clear. Every time Sanchez picked up the ball, Bellerin scampered beyond him and the two seemed like a match made in heaven on the right. Their combination also means the right side of Arsenal’s play is less top heavy. Bellerin tends to venture forward more than Monreal but with Sanchez (aka the Duracell Bunny) operating in front of him, he knows that someone will track back should young Hector be caught out of position.
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However, all these advantages don’t cancel out the possibility of Sanchez returning to the left wing at some point in time. Alexis made a name for himself at Arsenal as a hardworking, rapid and skillful left winger that could cut in and unleash thunderbolts (his goal vs Aston Villa in last season’s FA Cup final springs to mind). But recently, he has become more predictable when operating on the left. Full backs seem to recognise the fact that he loves cutting in and so they play a lot narrower against the Chilean. He has often been limited to running across rather than towards goal to find space.
Sanchez’s move to Arsenal’s right has stifled these apparent weaknesses and has made him a lot more unpredictable. His ability to drive inwards and link up with Ozil or use his pace to get to the by line to deliver a cross keeps the full back guessing and forces them to come out to meet him. From here Sanchez can manipulate them any way he chooses and the eventual result is usually very positive.
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The whole point I am making with this article is not that Sanchez should be permanently shunted to Arsenal’s right wing, but the fact that in this moment in time, he seems more productive and dangerous on that side of the field. In the future it is worth Wenger switching him in certain matches to keep our opponents guessing. But for now Sanchez should remain on the right because as the old saying goes: ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’.