Arsenal: Alexis Sanchez has regressed to just “one of the boys” again

Arsenal were once criticized for being too dependent on Alexis Sanchez, but he was our superstar. Now he’s nothing more to us than he was to Barcelona.

Alexis Sanchez is on his way out. Whatever breakthroughs he and Arsenal might have had over the years, it’s clear that their paths are best followed separately. For as bright as he began his North London career, he has backtracked.

When Alexis was on the rise at Barcelona, he was a supporting cast member. Between Messi and Neymar, they had enough superstar to go around, not to mention the rest of the cast there. There was no room for Alexis to assert himself. He was the fourth wheel in a three-man attack. His numbers were always wedged in between the numbers of every other capable star that they kept at the Catalans.

He came to Arsenal to shake off the dirt of being and start his own legacy, which he did immediately. In the first season, he led the team in goal production at 24 (16 goals, 8 assists). The next closest was Santi Cazorla‘s 18 and Olivier Giroud’s 17.

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Even in his following slump year, he managed 17 goal contributions behind Giroud’s 22 and Mesut Ozil’s 25.

But that’s when he shook off the dirt once and for all. In the 2016/17 season, he proved himself a superstar, contributing 34 Premier League goals.

The closest was Ozil’s 18. This was what he had wanted to become and Arsenal facilitated that desire. He had arrived at the top, he had shaken off the mantra of being “one of the guys” and become “the guy.”

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That was the peak, however. Call it a frustrated mentality from not wanting to be here, but all of a sudden, with the Gunners gaining more attackers, Alexis has faded. He has fallen back into what has to feel like his Barcelona days, where his numbers do not stand out. They fit in.

In fact, the Gunners may have moved on from Alexis quicker than he moved on from them. He is fourth in goal contributions, but the gap between fourth and fifth isn’t like the gap from third to fourth back in 2015/16. This is an Arsenal team that is sending out the tendrils in search of who can be their new workhorse and Alexis Sanchez is not answering the call.

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Alexandre Lacazette, Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey have all taken the invitation and are looking to fill the void that Alexis’s vacancy has caused. And, just like that, the Alexis era is over the year after it finally took hold.