Arsenal: Alexis Sanchez struggles show what Gunners need

Alexis Sanchez is struggling at Manchester United, in large part because of the frequency at which he loses the ball. But his struggles show precisely what Arsenal need: someone to take attacking risks, lose the ball, but create chances and score goals from nothing.

When Arsenal were somewhat forced into trading Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United in the January transfer window, there was a concern that there would be an absence of true wingers in the squad. Yes, Sanchez was being swapped for a fellow wide player in Henrikh Mkhitaryan, but the Armenian plays the position differently.

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Rather than looking to receive the ball and drive at opposing defenders at speed, Mkhitaryan, very much like Mesut Ozil, wants to drift into central areas, picking up positions that are difficult to mark and then play through passes and crosses to create chances for their teammates.

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That is not a bad thing, necessarily. Some of the best players in the world use such an approach. But when a team is almost exclusively made up of these type of players, then it can become concerning. For Arsenal, those concerns are accentuated by the struggles of Sanchez in Manchester.

Sanchez has not played well since the transfer six months ago. He is being increasingly criticised, has failed to adapt to Jose Mourinho’s defensive scheme, something that has a tendency to stifle even the most potent attacking talents, and is seen as a representative for the team toils of United during the closing stages last season and in the early part of this season.

Technically speaking, the aspect that most fans have been disappointed regarding Sanchez has been the frequency at which he has lost the ball. He was always a player who gave away possession at Arsenal, but his numbers have worsened since moving to Manchester, with a lower dribble success rate and a lower pass completion rate.

Ironically, however, while United fans may bemoan Sanchez’s tendency to lose the ball, the team he departed need precisely that: someone who is willing to be adventurous with their play, take risks with their decision-making, and trying to create chances and score goals, rather than just playing safe.

The current crop of attackers at the Emirates is somewhat safe and conservative. They all tend to protect their pass completion rate, play the easy pass, rather than the risky but more rewarding one, and rarely look to beat an opposing defender in one-on-one situations — the best dribbler in the squad is probably Alex Iwobi, which says more about the squad than it does Iwobi.

So while Sanchez may be struggling in Manchester, the Gunners may also be struggling without him. It was a marriage that ended bitterly, but it seems that divorce has only soured the situation.