With around two weeks of the transfer window left to play, Arsenal are busy trying to conclude a deal for Spanish midfielder Mikel Merino.... CLICK TO READ THE FULL NEWS HERE▶▶
Left-footed, capable of winning plenty of duels and possessing lovely crisp passing, he could finally be the man to fill a Granit Xhaka-shaped hole after he departed for Bayer Leverkusen last year.
Merino is one of the toughest midfielders in the game. No player won more aerial duels than he throughout Europe’s top five leagues in 2023/24.
Arsenal-Mikel-Merino-Arteta
So, you can bet that Arsenal will be even tougher to break down, even tougher to stop once the Real Sociedad midfielder arrives in the forthcoming days.
That said, what’s next on the agenda for the Gunners? A winger could still arrive, although with some of the price tags being mentioned, it would not be a surprise if they went without.
Arsenal’s hunt for a winger
One of Mikel Arteta’s primary targets at the start of the window was actually an international colleague of Merino’s, Nico Williams.
The winger has been linked with a host of clubs this summer, namely Chelsea, but Arsenal have looked at him too following a dazzling Euro 2024 campaign.
Nico-Williams-Euro-2024-Spain
Who are the alternatives? Well, GIVEMESPORTS’s Dean Jones claimed a few days ago that Raphinha – a player the Gunners wanted before his move to Barcelona – would be attainable following a topsy-turvy time of it in Catalonia.
Jones also mentioned that Real Madrid’s Rodrygo is someone they looked at signing. It’s a move that could have legs if he gets caught up behind the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr next season.
Rodrygo-Real-Madrid-Champions-League
As a result, it might not be one for this summer but it could be a deal to monitor moving forward.
How Rodrygo compares to Alexis Sanchez
You won’t find many more underrated players on the continent than Rodrygo. Playing in the shadow of Vini Jr in Madrid, you can see why he’s often forgotten about.
However, we simply cannot look past his numbers from last season. As Carlo Ancelotti’s men won the Champions League yet again, he scored 17 goals and supplied nine assists. To put those numbers into context, only Bukayo Saka scored more for Arsenal in 2023/24.
On that evidence, it’s hardly a surprise that the Madrid boss once labelled the Brazilian forward as one of “the best players in the world”.
With that billing in mind, he’d likely cost a pretty penny but then Arsenal do need further attackers, specifically a right winger like Rodrygo to compete for minutes with Saka, a player who simply played far too much football last season.
So, why would this move evoke memories of Alexis Sanchez? Well, as analyst Ben Mattinson said on , he could be “Alexis 2.0” due to the fact that he’s “an under-appreciated man at a huge club who’d be the star at Arsenal.”
Alexis-Sanchez-Arsenal
Prior to signing for the Gunners, Sanchez starred for Barcelona but he was in the shadow of Lionel Messi and Neymar. Sound familiar? It’s rather like the situation Rodrygo finds himself in at Madrid with Mbappe and Vini Jr.
That said, there are more comparisons than that. Their ability to make things happen out of nothing is rather alluring. They are tricky with the ball at their feet and they know how to beat their man with a clever piece of play. Here’s what the numbers tell us.
Rodrygo (23/24) vs Alexis Sanchez (17/18)
Stat (per 90 mins)
Rodrygo
Sanchez
Goals
0.38
0.32
Assists
0.19
0.21
Progressive carries
6.02
2.79
Progressive passes
3.41
7.74
Shots
3.26
3.04
Key passes
1.74
2.69
Shot-creating actions
4.20
6.04
Succesful take-ons
2.27
2.97
Carries
38
48.1
Carries into final 3rd
4.02
3.18
Progressive passes received
11.4
11.3
Stats via FBRef.
So, while there is a notable difference in style when it comes to the way they progress the ball – Rodrygo doing so in terms of carrying and Sanchez doing so in the way he passes – the basic principle of the way they play the game is the same.
Both love taking the ball forward and making things happen for their side. They registered a similar number of carries into the final third, received a nearly identical number of progressive passes and completed a similar number of take-ons.
It’s that unpredictable nature that separates the two and outlines why they both shone in LaLiga. Like the Madrid star, Sanchez did no wrong at Camp Nou, contributing 83 goals in 141 outings, but he simply had too much competition.
alexis-sánchez-barcelona
So, if he did join Arsenal in the future, Rodrygo could finally become a star man, rivalling the likes of Saka on the right and potentially playing ahead of Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard on the left. Those two are mighty fine players but they’re not Mbappe or Vinicius, are they?
