• Premier League

Sanchez: English game suits me better

ESPN staff
December 6, 2014
Wenger wary of Sanchez burnout

Alexis Sanchez says the more "direct" style of football in England suits his game better than the Barcelona approach.

Sanchez, 25, had joined Barcelona in 2011 after excelling in Serie A with Udinese, but he struggled to show his best form in Spain as the club went through a succession of managerial changes.

This summer, he made the move to Arsenal and has made an instant impact, with nine league goals in 13 games, and manager Arsene Wenger has suggested he has adapted to the Premier League as well as any other player in history.

  • Arsene Wenger has admitted in-form Alexis Sanchez is "in the red zone physically" and in danger of picking up an injury, but he is not likely to rest him for Saturday's Premier League game at Stoke.
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"It cost me a lot to adapt to playing the Barcelona way," the Chile international told The Times. "The first year was OK and then the second year I was better, but I needed time.

"Arsenal play beautiful football, but Barcelona play in a way that no other team in the world does. English football is more direct, more end to end, but I like that. It suits the way I want to play."

Sanchez also said he has not noticed a significant dip in quality in training since leaving the Camp Nou, where he had worked alongside the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Andres Iniesta.

"My team-mates have helped me adapt," he said. "If my team-mates were not so good, then I would not have done so well. It is that easy.

"The quality here is impressive. You only need to take a glance around [a training session] to see that. It is the same level, more or less, as there was at Barcelona. We do different things in training, but player for player, it is just about the same."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd
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