There is something special about Alexis Sanchez.
We don’t mean his lightning speed or dazzling footwork. Nor are we talking about his unerring finishing or admirable work ethnic. What sets him apart is his granite mentality.
You can see it in each performance and every reaction. His off-pitch persona may be one of dog-loving, always affable cheeky chappy, but on the pitch he is absolutely driven, in a similar way to a Roy Keane or Patrick Vieira.
He demands perfection of himself and his teammates. If ever anyone accuses Arsene Wenger’s men of lacking ‘bottle’ or being ‘spineless’, such a claim cannot be levelled at Sanchez – he really fucking cares and it shows.
It is something that was all too apparent at the end of Arsenal’s 3-3 draw with Bournemouth on Tuesday night. Many of his colleagues seemed content with a stirring comeback from 3-0 down, but not the Chilean.
He was fuming. Not only did he look utterly baffled at Olivier Giroud’s premeditated Scorpion antics upon scoring the equaliser – with minutes still on the clock for a winner – but his reaction at the final whistle said it all.
Whilst others trudged off and politely shook hands with their worthy adversaries, Sanchez was apoplectic with rage at a result that leaves the Gunners 8 points behind Chelsea, having played a game more. He looked ready to punch someone.
There are those who may see such behaviour as childish or bratty, but you could say the same of many other born winners who demanded success, and for whom second best was ultimately failure.
Arsenal fans fear the mercurial forward may go elsewhere if his current teammates can’t live up to his demanding expectations. Especially if they’re going to fuck around with daft goal routines when a title is at stake.
Giroud had time to do a scorpion celebration at 3-3 with 3 mins to go. Are you kidding me. That mentality.
— Ben Talks United 🔴 (@bentalksutd) January 3, 2017
Look at Alexis' face.. Pure disbelief.. pic.twitter.com/4fvyRIkK0I
— Arsène's Son 🎈 (@hughwizzy) January 3, 2017
This is a great image of Alexis by Dylan Martinez (Reuters)
More other good ones here pic.twitter.com/EKWuIAFmQJ— Oliver Butler (@obutler) January 3, 2017
Alexis is 100% off in the summer. He hates half our team even more than I do.
— David (@DavidAFC__) January 3, 2017
We'll look back at this being the moment Alexis realised he cant be here anymore. https://t.co/1gsIpPzLmd
— kigen 🍍 (@kiigenn) January 3, 2017
