Alexis the Wizard and the magic of the Champions League

The UEFA Champions League is known for its magical atmosphere but there is something seriously Harry Potter-esque happening this season. Arsenal finished top of their group for the first time since 2012 and managed to do so without suffering a loss, which means only one thing: they will not face any other group winners-and more importantly-FC Barcelona in the round of 16 this time.

That would be very welcome news in any other scenario, however as it always is with Arsenal, lady luck has a plan of its own. Bayern Munich, Juventus, Sevilla/Lyon and either of Real Madrid or Dortmund still await them in the next phase of the UCL. But before we all dismiss any chance of Arsenal keeping up the Hogwarts’ tactics in play, it is time to consider the magician who is making all this happen.

Arsène Wenger would probably not care if I referred to him as the Chosen One, but he is still the reason why Alexis Sanchez is doing what he’s doing. A lot has been made of the striking similarity of converting the supposed wingers into forwards by Wenger in the cases of Sanchez and Thierry Henry, and it is fair to say there is enough evidence to support this claim. The Chilean managed 13 goals in 30 PL appearances last season and has already got a stat total of 11 in 14 apps. Something similar happened to the French legend when he properly burst onto the scene after moving to the centre, goals galore and assists whenever he wanted. True, he was a much lesser known quantity at the time but the parallels between his partnership with Dennis Bergkamp and that of Ozil and Sanchez are hard to ignore. It was as if in testament to this venture yesterday that Sanchez refused to look at a better option for a pass many times in favor of always finding the German.

At first I was skeptical about how long the experiment with him in the centre would work, given his lack of height and the unforgiving nature of the Premier League’s defenses. As time passed and week after week I saw the Chilean barely bothered by any defender, the aforementioned unforgiving nature started to come into play. The glaring difference being, it was the newly formed centre forward doing the punishing and the defenders getting wound up. He may have lost 24 out of 30 headed duels in the time being, but his tackle count stacks up at 29 (13 successful) in 11 games. An insatiable need to have the ball makes El Nino Maravilla the most effective and restless presser in football. It is because of this that Arsenal are able to start games with such a high intensity now and the only team to beat them at their game was Herr Klopp’s heavy-metal Liverpool.

The more interesting thing about the way he plays now is the manner in which he drops from the centre to float and dictate play. Saying so in an interview, he claimed to like “the way Lionel Messi plays” for Barcelona and that this new role allowed him to do just that. Alex Iwobi’s goal from last night is quintessential for this situation: dropping out of the forward’s position, Sanchez floated to the left, exchanged passes with Kieran Gibbs before releasing Mesut who placed it on a platter for the young Nigerian. Drawing no comparisons with a player who’s mostly believed not to be human, having someone do the things like that surely makes you smile with glee.

Magic is a word largely associated with the said Argentinean, and if Arsenal are to face him and his team later in the Champions League, it would do their confidence no harm to know they have someone who can do similar things for them. The influence that Alexis now has over the way this side plays is more than any playmaker could ever have. Primarily because, he doesn’t need a finisher to conclude the moves he creates, seeing as he himself ends up in those positions more often than not.

There is something special brewing at the Emirates this season, whether it is the birth of a world class star about to join the league of Messi’s & Ronaldo’s, or is it just Arsenal getting to the latter stages of the Champions League, the answers unfold on Monday night. The popular-and satirical-vote may go to Munich, but here is my prediction for the Gunners round of 16 opponents:

Ba-nope, not this time. Sevilla vs Arsenal