Alexis Sanchez is far down the list of Manchester United‘s heroes on a famous, if fortunate night in Turin. The Chilean was off the pitch when Juan Mata and Marouane Fellaini helped change the game in his side’s favour – but there were nonetheless a few shoots of promise from his performance.
Deployed as a central striker in the absence of Romelu Lukaku – whether it’s through injury or a loss of form – Sanchez led the charge at Allianz Stadium.
Here’s a closer look at how he got on …
STATISTICS
Goals – 0
Assists – 0
Shots – 1
Shots on target – 0
Touches – 31
Passes – 21
Pass accuracy – 90.5%
Dribbles – 1
Fouled – 2
GOT RIGHT
Sharp runs – After several months of Lukaku doing his best impression of a statue, it has been refreshing to witness some movement from the tip of United’s spear. Juventus were clearly the dominant side yet the quick-twitch movement of Sanchez oh-so-nearly paid off for the visitors in the first half, as he was half a toe away from latching onto a superb Nemanja Matic ball after beating the Juventus line.
Passing in final third – There was one delicious combination with Paul Pogba in the second half that has been lacking from Sanchez’s repertoire ever since he made the move north from London. No real chance came from it, but his cunning flicks and prescient passing radar deep in opposition territory is exactly what United need if they are to dine at the top table again. The trouble was that, even though Sanchez had no trouble retaining the ball, apart from a flash of Pogba here or there was no one to riff off.
"I believe he has lost confidence."
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) November 7, 2018
Wenger explains why Alexis Sánchez has lost his way at Manchester United since leaving Arsenal. #beINUCL #MUFC pic.twitter.com/llFWTjkkzb
GOT WRONG
Set-pieces – As good as he was when the ball was pinging about near the area, Sanchez failed to inject any life into dead-ball situations. One free-kick in a promising position found a Juventus stomach, and he nearly went from corner flag to corner flag with a satellite-finder in the second half. Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci usually gobble up set-pieces for fun – but with chances at a premium, he should at least have made them work. Just look what happened after he came off.
VERDICT
Very few people are going to be beating the drum for Sanchez off the back of this display, but on closer inspection he was quietly effective and gave United a dynamic in attack that they have been sorely lacking.
The 29-year-old has looked bereft when stationed on a flank, often scooting into the running lanes of his team-mates. But with a little more space to operate laterally, and drop off or make an arcing run when required, Sanchez is in a position to showcase his intelligence when played through the middle.
It’ll be interesting to see how long Lukaku is out – but Sanchez still needs a marquee performance to give the big Belgian something to worry about.
RATING: 6.5/10
All statistics are compiled using whoscored.com
