Alexis Sanchez carries Arsenal hopes of Etihad upturn

What you need to know:

  • Sanchez scored two goals and made another in Arsenal’s 3-0 home win over Stoke City last weekend
  • Arsene Wenger’s side ultimately finished seven points off the pace as City were crowned champions.

LONDON

Arsenal will look to in-form Alexis Sanchez when they attempt to repair a sequence of diminishing returns at Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium in the Premier League on Sunday.

Sanchez scored two goals and made another in Arsenal’s 3-0 home win over Stoke City last weekend, taking him to 12 goals and eight assists for the campaign and moving City manager Manuel Pellegrini to describe him as “the best player in England”.

The Chilean’s unerring finishing and exemplary work ethic will be central to Arsenal’s hopes of success at the Etihad, where fortune has deserted them ever since City were taken over by Sheikh Mansour in 2008.

In the years since the Emirati billionaire’s acquisition of City, Arsenal have won one, drawn one and lost five of the seven matches they have played at the Etihad in all competitions.

Before that, they had won six of their seven previous trips to City.

Their most recent visit, in December 2013, was infamous, as the title aspirations of a team who went into the match top of the table were ruthlessly torn apart in a humbling 6-3 defeat.

Arsene Wenger’s side ultimately finished seven points off the pace as City were crowned champions. Ahead of Sunday’s game they are 11 points behind City, and 13 shy of leaders Chelsea.

Arsenal’s fans have learnt to associate Sheikh Mansour with the sight of departing stars, as Samir Nasri, Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure, Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna have all left the Emirates Stadium for City in recent years.

But now that Wenger no longer has to weigh the need for new recruits against the cost of building the Emirates, the long-held dream of attracting superstars such as Sanchez to the club has become reality.