Team of the Season – Alexis Sanchez

Alexis Sanchez’ £35m switch to the Emirates last summer carried a weight of expectation that was relative to his sizeable transfer fee. Given that only PFA Player of the Year Eden Hazard and Golden Boot winner Sergio Aguero outscored the Gunners’ marquee acquisition in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game, it’s fair to say Sanchez hit the ground running and will be a Fantasy favourite for the duration of his stay in North London.

The Statistics

Sanchez didn’t take long to acclimatise to the unique rigours of the Premier League, notching two goals and one assist in his first four starts. The Chilean international’s value then slipped from 10.5 to 10.3 by Gameweek 7 due to injury, before six goals in four fixtures saw non-owners frantically cobbling together the funds to bring him on board.

Beyond a frenetic first 11 Gameweeks, Sanchez offered sporadic returns, netting in six of his subsequent 25 starts. Most notably, a six-match stretch from Gameweek 22 – in which the former Barcelona man sat out two matches through injury and drew blanks in the other four matches – prompted 500,000 managers to cash in on the South American. Nonetheless, eight 10+ points hauls and four 15+ points hauls over the course of the season cemented his status a big hitter.

Ultimately, the former Barcelona winger ended the campaign with the third-highest total score (207), behind Hazard (233) and Aguero (216), establishing himself as a top Fantasy pick right from the offset and the prime choice for Arsenal coverage – Santi Cazorla (168 points) boasted the next best haul within the Gunners squad.

No midfielder chalked up as many goals as Sanchez (16) last term, while eight assists placed him joint-sixth among his counterparts. Furthermore, Sanchez earned the third-most bonus points (29) of any player in the league – trailing Harry Kane (32) and Hazard (42) – and ranked fourth in the overall leaderboard with regards to points per game (ppg), with his average of 5.9 far outstripping Arsenal’s second-most consistent performer in Mesut Ozil (4.7 ppg).

The Prospects

The first port of call when expounding on Sanchez’s potential next season is his scheduled involvement in the Copa America with Chile. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger recently voiced his concerns over the summer tournament, questioning whether the Premier League attendees are being afforded enough time to recover ahead of the new season:

“I am really surprised that FIFA authorised that. It’s disappointing that they speak a lot about the health of the players but when you look at the competition that is organised, this Copa America, and look at the date of the start of the Premier League, it is not reasonable. Moving the fixture calendar forward deeply affects pre-season and I believe it is the wrong decision of the Premier League to start on August 8.The players have played the World Cup, then you have no winter break, you come out and when you reach the FA Cup Final, you play on May 30 and the European players called up by their international teams play until June 14. Then you start on August 8. If you count six weeks’ preparation, where is the time for recovery?”

Given that the final of the Copa America takes place on July 4, Wenger is wary of involving Sanchez from the off, should Chile make the latter stages:

“It’s not good news because they finish very late and if Chile go very far he will miss the start of the season.”

Clearly, then, Chile’s progress could have an impact on how we construct our initial squads for the season ahead. Wenger rested German duo Mesut Ozil and Per Mertesacker for Arsenal’s Gameweek 1 fixture last term after their World Cup exertions, with the pair returning against Everton for the following fixture on August 23. Given that the upcoming campaign starts a week earlier, it may well be that, if Sanchez makes the Copa America final, he could be afforded a rest from domestic duties until Gameweek 3 this time out. Those managers wanting to draft him in would have to pre-plan an entry route for Sanchez beyond Gameweek 1 to accommodate his services.

Certainly, there’s no shortage of temporary alternatives in the Arsenal midfield. Ozil, Cazorla and Aaron Ramsey remain nailed on, whilst Theo Walcott’s end-of-season flourish has given his manager real food for thought up front. If the former Southampton winger can oust Olivier Giroud as the Gunners’ lone striker, his out of position prospects would surely make him one of the most popular picks across the Fantasy games, given he’s likely to remain classified as a midfielder.

Although Sanchez served up four braces in his debut campaign, he was subject to 1,500,000 ‘transfers out’ last term, with many frustrated by his inconsistency as a Fantasy asset. Despite his direct involvement in 24 (16 goals, eight assists) of Arsenal’s goals, the Chilean drew blanks in 21 of 35 league appearances, rendering him a far less reliable captaincy choice than the likes of Hazard. Nonetheless, his overall haul of 207 points means he will remain the priciest option amongst Arsenal’s attackers, with a price of 10.5 or 11.0 anticipated.

Whilst Sanchez could, conceivably, miss the first couple of matches, the underlying stats suggest he’ll be near-impossible to overlook once fully fit. In his first season in the top-flight, he produced more shots (121), efforts in the box (71), shots on target (49) and goals (16) than any other midfielder. If he steps up another level next time out, few will be willing to ignore him.