The Daily Star report that Arsenal are the favourites to re-sign Alexis Sanchez in a rumour I was not expecting to see at all.

Since leaving Arsenal to become the highest paid player in the history of the Premier League, Alexis has largely flopped. Earning approximately £500kpw on a four-and-a-half-year deal, it seems highly unlikely he would give that up to move. The buying club would have to match his wages if they wanted to sign him.

With Arsenal, that’s just not going to happen. Especially not when you consider the size of the transfer fee that would be required to buy him back 12 months after he left.

The fact is, Alexis leaving did Arsenal a favour. Yes, he was a great player for the Gunners, but his limitations were always evident to see and there is simply no space for him in the squad anymore.

As I wrote a while back, it’s not likely to get any better for Alexis, no matter where he plays.

If you’re an Arsenal fan who delights in schadenfreude then Alexis Sanchez’s move to Manchester United must taste very sweet indeed.

Not only is Alexis failing to fire at all, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who travelled the other way, hit the ground running and has scored or created 13 in 23 games for Arsenal. Alexis has three goals and six assists in the same number of games.

Of course, schadenfreude requires misfortune to delight in and how much of that there is when Alexis landed such a mega contract is debatable.

There’s no denying that Alexis has struggled since leaving Arsenal. Last season, he endured what could be described as his worst season since arriving in the Premier League in 2014 and his worst overall since he was just 21.

9 goals and 6 assists in 31 Premier League games last season is a remarkable drop from his stats the season before which saw him score 24 and assist 11 in 38.

Turning 30 in a few months, it’s hard to see how Alexis can get better than he was with Arsenal although, at this point, I’m sure most United fans would accept him simply being better than he is right now. He has just one assist to his name this season from five games.

But that might never happen.

There is a long history of players moving from Arsenal looking for greener pastures only to find themselves waist-deep in shit.

Thomas Vermaelen couldn’t resist the call of Barcelona in 2014. Similarly, Alex Song, and Alex Hleb. None of those players, however, could be said to have the talent of Alexis.

What then of Cesc Fabregas? Sure, he won some trophies but at the cost of his Arsenal legacy and a life as a player no longer loved by any set of fans. Emmanuel Adebayor, Samir Nasri, and Lasana Diarra are another few that spring to mind, but it is a long list.

Similarly, Robin van Persie, who is perhaps the closest Alexis example. He left Arsenal when he finally hit his peak, enjoyed one good season with United and then faded to nothing.

image 8
Daily Mail 21 March 2018

As I’ve mentioned before in other posts on here, including before Alexis moved, players who score more than 20 goals regularly are a very rare commodity and Alexis Sanchez has never been in that bracket.

His 30-goal season for Arsenal was the best season he’s ever had as a professional. Last season he should have built on that.

Instead, he spent half of it sulking about not being allowed to move to Manchester City and not making the World Cup. He switched off at Arsenal and hasn’t been able to restart himself at United.

Alexis is a player who wants to play every minute. Like a toddler having a tantrum, coaches have spoken about the frustration Alexis feels when he’s not playing. Given his current form, frustration is unlikely to do anything to help him or United.

United are said to be fearful that Alexis will turn into another Angel Di Maria and it’s not hard to see why.

Manchester United and their fans will be hoping that they see the best of Alexis Sanchez this season but his past performances are no guarantee of anything and even those don’t hint at a player who is just waiting to burst out with 20 goals a season for the next four years

alexis sanchez career goals
via Wikipedia

The biggest fear Arsenal fans had was that Alexis would go to United and do what Robin van Persie did. But they shouldn’t have worried. That outcome was always more unlikely than the Chilean having a relatively ordinary season punctuated with a sprinkling of magic moments.

At the minute, however, you get the feeling that United fans would take even that.

As for Arsenal, I can’t imagine for a second that they want to take him back.