2. We’re too reliant on Alexis Sanchez
In the last “3 Things We Learnt” article I wrote a bit on how Alexis Sanchez was currently our main man and that was again the case here (with the assistance of Wes Brown and Vito Mannone). The 25-year-old Chilean international worked his socks, as per usual, and his constant pressing and alertness led to both of his goals, after capitalising on Brown and Mannone’s individual mistakes. He also finished with conviction, nipping the ball over a helpless Mannone on both occasions. It is quite refreshing to have a player who you are almost certain will finish when 1 v 1 with the opposition goalkeeper. He was also the only player who showed a real desire, and others (Santi Cazorla comes to mind) missed chances that should have been put away. This reliance on a single player is reminiscent of the 2011-2012 season, when we had a certain 31-year-old Dutchman, and we know how that one turned out! Hopefully this is just a blip in Sanchez’s teammates’ form and they start playing to his level soon.