Hazard Vs Sanchez: A Statistical Comparison

If you are a regular watcher of the Premier League, there are two names you will not have missed. Lighting it up at the Emirates Stadium for Arsenal is Alexis Sanchez and performing impeccably for the table-toppers Chelsea is Eden Hazard. As many have noted, when their respective teams looked off the boil, these two attacking midfielders have carried all the burden on their own shoulders. Being an important asset to their team, either of these players is a crucial factor in determining where their team will stand come May.

So pivotal have their roles been that at times they have resembled a beacon of hope more than just another player playing for his wages. In his third season in the Premier League, Hazard is finally coming into his own with the expert guidance of Jose Mourinho. On the other hand, having recently arrived from Barcelona, Chilean Alexis Sanchez has had an immediate impact and is very often the reason Arsene Wenger’s boys return home with a point or three even after a dismal defensive performance.

While in Hazard’s case he has others to shoulder his burden, Sanchez has been the only bright spark in Arsenal’s season so far. For example, in the last respective Champions League fixtures, both were headline grabbers. In a lacklustre performance against NK Maribor by the Blues, Hazard stood out, being the only player trying hard enough to claw out a result. On the other hand, Alexis Sanchez inspired his team to a three goal lead before his defence comically sold him out, shipping three before the ninety minutes was over. His second goal stood out in particular, where having won the free-kick, he decided to take it. Smashing it into the wall, he decided to hit the rebound first time, which found its way into the net.

While it might only seem prudent to compare their outputs for their respective teams via direct metrics, it would be slightly misleading as both players are different in their own right. Hazard is a gifted attacking midfielder who has firmly bought into the Mourinho philosophy of defending from the front. Now Hazard doesn’t just stand when he has lost the ball, but he instead makes an effort to chase it back down. Au contraire, Sanchez is pretty much a luxury player. Yes, he is brilliant in attack but is not a player who could fit into the philosophy currently employed by Chelsea. His defensive contribution is negligible, if not detrimental.

Sanchez has a vastly superior attacking output to Hazard. This is primarily because almost all of Arsenal’s attacks go through him. This is very much like the situation with Di Maria at United. When the whole team is underperforming except for one man, the ball ends up with that one man more often than not. He has more touches in the attacking zones than any other Arsenal player. Comparing it with Hazard, he is one of the many attacking riches at Chelsea’s disposal and the Belgian is not under the same kind of pressure to deliver in every game as the Chilean is.

That’s not to say that he hasn’t performed. Most often for Chelsea, it has been Hazard’s guile and trickery that has led to them making inroads. If he doesn’t score or assist, he manages to break the opposition’s defensive ranks with his moments of magic. Add to that his increasing work rate, and he has all the tools to be one of the best players in the game. All he lacks is the killer instinct. He prefers to pass instead of shooting, and sometimes it isn’t the right call.

Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher agreed recently upon the fact that Cesar Azpilicueta is the league’s best defender. While saying that isn’t untrue, but having Hazard in front of you counts for a lot these days. Hazard has come a long way defensively from the guy who lost his winger that led to Atletico scoring against Chelsea in the Champions League second leg. He now displays awareness that is well beyond his years, often blocking off passing lanes when the opposition have the ball. Playing on the wings, clearances are a major part of his defensive duties as to save his full-back’s rear, he needs to hoof the ball clear. And he has been very good at it. Likewise, his trickery on the flanks leads to him being fouled much more often than Sanchez. Very often, like the foul on him by Vargas against QPR, the fouls tend to be inside the box, resulting in penalties, which he is very, very good at converting!

Squawka have a really good method of indexing a player’s contribution by giving out scores for different aspects of their game. Taking up the scores for these players tells a surprising story. The surprise isn’t the fact that Sanchez, the big fish in a relatively small pond, has such a big lead over Hazard in terms of the attack score, but it is that Hazard has the better score overall. Where does Hazard make up the ground lost in attack scores?

Whoa! Sanchez’s defensive contribution was not scanty, but as I stated earlier, it is rather detrimental. He loses the ball in key areas and doesn’t track his runner back as regularly as is expected of him. This is precisely what I meant while labelling him as a luxury player. But he is a luxury that everyone wants. Maybe not everyone, but about 9/10 top teams would blindfoldedly have Sanchez over their starting attacking midfielders any day because the Chilean is a proven match winner. His moments of magic turn the tie on its head. But a sad fact is that Chelsea would be that 1/10 team that would say no to a player of such immense talents. Of course he will be an upgrade offensively over Willian, Schurrle and Salah, but his defensive contributions don’t match any of the trio mentioned, and a solid counterattacking system is based on a defence that can ward off any attack.

Taking nothing away from either of these players, both of them are two of the most in-form players in the league and can win the game by ripping the opposition defence apart single-handedly. But it remains to be seen if Hazard can inculcate the killer touch that will set him firmly in the category of the Ronaldo and Messi, or if Sanchez can up his defensive game to become a better all-round player. All that said, their teams will be thoroughly pleased with them if they keep winning games as they have been.