Om. What place for Alexis Sanchez in the playing system of Olympique de Marseille?

If Alexis Sanchez no longer has the legs and statistics of his years at Arsenal (2014-2018), the Chilean remains a star of the football world and his arrival in Ligue 1 obviously does not go unnoticed.

A luxury substitute at Inter Milan, he still knew how to be decisive and weigh in the Milan game, despite his relegation to the bench behind the duo Lukaku – Lautaro Martinez then Dzeko – Lautaro Martinez. As proof, last January, he notably scored the winning goal in extra time, offering the Italian Super Cup to Inter against Juventus Turin (2-1, ap).

But, Alexis Sanchez certainly does not put his suitcases on the Canebière to polish the bench. If he may no longer have the cash to chain all the meetings as a holder, it is this role that he should take on the majority of the meetings, where his experience will also be an additional weapon. in the Champions League.

While Olympique de Marseille already has a panoply of attacking players, what role can the 33-year-old hope for in Igor Tudor’s squad?

A place behind the leading striker?

If Sanchez has always been a versatile striker, which had seduced FC Barcelona at the time (2011-2014), it was on his wing that the Chilean was most at ease. As was the case with the Gunners, under Arsène Wenger, where his speed and ability to make the difference in one-on-one situations made him one of the hottest players. Alexis Sanchez even finished 10th in the Ballon d’Or in 2015.

But since leaving Arsenal for Manchester United in 2018, the player has lost his luster. No longer having the legs to crunch the competition on his side and hit, he was also replaced in a system with two attackers, or so a little lower, in the heart of the game.

Since pre-season, Igor Tudor has opted for a three-man defense and a 3-4-2-1 system with a single leading attacker. The Pole Milik seems for the moment to have the advantage in this position, despite the presence in the workforce of other numbers 9 (Bakambu, Dieng and Luis Suárez). So it is more likely to see the Croatian coach associate his new recruit with Arkadiusz Milik, who could be a good anchor, rather than being tempted to put Sanchez alone in the lead. But, in the event of a real association of the two players, it would be necessary to review its system, which for the moment seems rather balanced with Clauss and Nuno Tavares pistons which rise well, Rongier and Guendouzi in low point and midfielders, then two more attacking players behind the striker.

Keeping the current system, Alexis Sanchez could therefore take a place in one of the two roles behind the striker, alongside captain Dimitri Payet. But, here again, the coach is not lacking in attacking elements available with also Gerson and Ünder, the latter two having also been established in the first match of the season against Reims (4-1), to the detriment of Payet.