When Arsène Wenger’s reign at Arsenal finally ends, there’s no doubt that the competition to be crowned the Frenchman’s bargain buy will be fierce. Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry; to that add Alexis Sanchez.
At around £32m, to class the Chilean as a bargain takes some doing. Or so you would think but with the financial power Arsenal have accumulated in recent years, increasingly the double Copa America winner is proving to be a bargain in the truest sense of the word.
As the north London club’s Premier League title challenge collapsed last season, supporters became increasingly fed up with Olivier Giroud. The French striker was in a fifteen-match barren spell and Arsenal, having reeled Leicester City in with a last-gasp 2 – 1 win over the future champions.
The summer came and there was a relentless chant of “Spend some money” on the Goonersphere which demanded a world-class striker. Matters came to a head when Juventus stole in and signed Gonzalo Higuaín for €75m. Arsenal, once again assembling a decent squad, were being left at the gate. Giroud had a good summer but every year at Arsenal, he endures a goalless streak which hampers the club’s bid for success. For many, he will be nothing more than a Plan B.
With no new arrivals, it seemed Wenger’s only alternatives were the promising Chuba Akpom, the hapless Yaya Sanogo or the exquisite Sanchez. Theo Walcott’s pretensions of being a central striker were brutally ended by Wenger. The England international was left in no doubt that his future was on the right – occasionally the left if injuries dictated – and strong rumours abounded that Walcott was on his way to childhood favourites, Liverpool.
Arsenal’s fanbase were unimpressed with the options Wenger left himself. The inexperienced or the goalless; or Alexis. There were good grounds to be sceptical about his ability to fulfil the central striking role. The Chilean had played there successfully for his country as well as Udinese and Barcelona but for Arsenal, he had been entirely unconvincing.
Genuine questions were asked and he has answered them emphatically.
His average over his Arsenal currently sits at exactly a goal every other game. 40 in 80 appearances. That’s impressive enough but more so when you consider he has been predominantly used as a wide attacker – with licence to roam – by Wenger. This season he has battered that average: 11 goals in 15 Premier League appearances.
It’s an astonishing return but more than the just the goals, Arsenal are benefiting greatly. There’s a vibrancy about their play which was previously missing from Arsenal’s game that Alexis is the heartbeat of.
Not that Sanchez is solely responsible. Mesut Ozil is the magician; arguably, the German is in the form of his club career, culminating in yesterday’s looping header against Stoke, a goal which said everything about Ozil’s form. His confidence in front of goal is such that he’s willing to try the unusual to score.
Alexis has been at the core of Ozil’s resurgence in front of goal. One of the world’s great creators, a regular criticism of Ozil has been his lack of goals. He’s halfway toward his best league goals return in a season and just two behind his best-ever goal tally for a season. For his three goals, Sanchez was the creator; the kickstarter – the Firestarter.
The knock-on effect has been to drive confidence into the heart of the Arsenal squad. Shkodran Mustafi’s arrival shored up a leaky defence and with that, eyes turned forward. Alexis answered the call, with his season epitomised by the hat-trick at West Ham. Each of them was uniquely Sanchez’s. Others will score similar goals but none of them are as defining to a man’s career.
They were so typical of Alexis. Three goals with an unpredictable mix in them. Scored on the break, they were built of strength, pace, power and guile; a combustible mix in front of goal. West Ham were vulnerable at the back and Sanchez was ruthless; he brought his Chilean form to the Premier League and punished the Hammers.
It followed a brace against Bournemouth after a spell of four goalless games; he’d scored two in Arsenal’s 4 – 1 win at Sunderland but been dogged by injury whilst on international duty. Fears that he would miss several weeks due to the hamstring strain evident at the Chile training camp proved unfounded but the talismanic Arsenal striker struggled to find the net while he was wearing heavy strapping on his thigh.
The biggest contribution is to release the Arsenal midfield from their shackles. There’s no doubt that Alexis’ success as a striker has been partly attributable to the willingness of midfielders to run beyond the striker who loves to drop deep to collect the ball. That has proven to be the pivotal change in Arsenal’s style; previously limited by the relatively static Giroud, a player who ran side-to-side rather than the problem Alexis causes defenders in coming into the midfield.
It leaves centre backs with an unenviable decision. If they follow him to the middle of the pitch and he loses them, there’s a gap for him to exploit. If they don’t follow him and he turns with the ball, he can gain a head of speed quickly, forcing them to onto the back foot.
Is this a permanent move for Sanchez? If so, Arsenal could do better than quibble over his wages. Current negotiations are stalling due to £400k per week offers from China. Wenger knows that replacing the Chilean will cost Arsenal £50m+ and similar wages; it’s a no-brainer. Pay the money, keep the star and win the trophies.
