No, it’s not just to piss off Manchester City.
When news broke that Manchester United had pretty much successfully hijacked Manchester City’s attempt to sign Alexis Sanchez, the more cynical observers concluded that it was a stunning piece of powerplay in the psychological warfare between Jose Mourinho and his rival managers.
In recent weeks, Mourinho has been happily stoking the flames of the mutual antipathy between himself and Chelsea boss Antonio Conte. He doesn’t really get on with Pep Guardiola either and, when Mourinho swooped for Sanchez, it was seen as the Portuguese tactician getting one back on his old foe.
The narrative painted was that United had gazumped City and Guardiola had missed out on a chief transfer target, one they had been circling since the summer when they came close to signing him from Arsenal.
Here's some stats to get stuck into!
Looking at data since their arrival in the Premier League, Alexis Sanchez scores with more regularity, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan delivers assists at a quicker rate.
A closer look at how they compare: https://t.co/iOfmTHaRNy pic.twitter.com/vZnrRb6Kow
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) January 18, 2018
However, while much of the analysis has focused on the gravitational pull of United and their considerable financial might, it’s worth remembering that there are genuine footballing reasons behind the Sanchez deal.
Speaking after United’s 1-0 over Burnley, Mourinho explained that the reason behind the acquisition of the Chilean is the need for competition in attacking places.
“In this moment there is no competition for places,” he said. “We have four attacking players for three positions, three are starting, one is on the bench, Zlatan for the whole season was not available, we look to central defenders, played Jones and Smalling, Rojo on the bench, Victor [Lindelof] in the stands, [Eric] Bailly is injured, look to midfield, Fellaini, Herrera and McTominay on the bench, Carrick in the stands. And we look to the attacking areas and we need that extra competitive internal competition but more solutions for us, so let’s see.”
Sanchez can operate on either wing, in behind the striker or up front, which will give Mourinho plenty to ponder once he arrives. With Ibrahimovic injured and generally not having much left in the tank, it makes sense to give Romelu Lukaku competition up front. The important thing, as far as United fans are concerned of course, is that Sanchez’s arrival does not hinder the progress of Anthony Martial, Jesse Lingard or Marcus Rashford. Then again, making them all fit into a cohesive attacking unit is where Mourinho earns his keep.
“I think it is so close, so close, so close.”
Jose Mourinho confirms he expects Man United to sign Alexis Sanchez. pic.twitter.com/da2XBrerZO
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) January 20, 2018
United’s clean sheet at Turf Moor on Saturday was their fifth in a row so it’s clear that defending has not been an issue of late. However, with the Champions League knockout round to come coupled with the desire to finish ahead of Chelsea and Liverpool in the table, Mourinho has felt the need to spend on attacking reinforcements.
Ultimately, it’s an impressive piece of business for United. Ed Woodward has landed one of the finest attacking talents in the Premier League in a straight swap deal – an extremely rare bird at this level – for a player in Henrikh Mkhitaryan who has failed to shine consistently at Old Trafford. Sanchez’s wages are indeed high, but that is essentially the price United are clearly able and willing to pay for the creativity and dynamism the 29-year-old will bring to the team’s frontline.
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