Despite Arsenal's disheartening start to the season, which sees the club 11 points behind title rivals Chelsea in the league and three points behind Dortmund in the Champions League, there have been some positives. For example, the team is showing resilieince when chasing games, especially in the last 15 minutes. This has been evident in the fixtures against Crystal Palace, Hull and most recently Anderlecht. Sadly, the team as a whole have struggled to put in a good performance from the point of kick-off to the final whistle. However, after each performance there are always two players the fans are just obligated to praise. Those two players are Alexis Sanchez and Danny Welbeck.
During the World Cup, when the speculation of Alexis to Arsenal was at it's greatest, everybody knew that it would be a fantastic signing. Everyone knew he wasn't exactly what the Gunners needed, that being a defensive midfielder, but he would bolster the attack. Besides, beating Liverpool to sign a world class player would have been a great feeling but many of the fans did not know that they had not just signed a player, they had signed a warrior, a soldier and a wilderbeast.
On transfer deadline day, many fans were sat on their couches, with the T.V fixed on Sky Sports News and their laptops open, waiting for the announcement of a world class striker joining the club. An hour after deadline day, it was announced that the club had signed Danny Welbeck. Many labelled him as a donkey and a player who was no different to Olivier Giroud. They were wrong. Arsenal had signed yet another warrior.
So what is it that Alexis and Welbeck have in common? They both have the attitude every coach dreams for in a player. Rain, sun, hail or snow, these two players will give it their all. The two players always chase down defenders, always track back and always look to work hard for the good of the team, which is why they've stood out so much and will continue to stand out unless their teammates match their passion, hunger and desire on the pitch.
There's a common saying in life, "great minds think alike" and that is exactly why Danny Welbeck and Alexis Sanchez link up brilliantly, the 3-0 victory over Aston Villa is evidence of this. So often this season, Arsenal have been playing poorly and have struggled to create anything but either Alexis or Welbeck step up when they're needed to, take responsibility and put in that extra effort which leads into a goal. We all saw this against Anderlecht. The ball was crossed into the box and Alexis showed his bravery and iniative to control the ball on his chest. What happened next was just magical. Even though the Chilean was losing his balance, he still made sure he beat his defender and squared the ball to Podolski. Against Hull City, it was a similar story. In the 90th minute, Alexis still had the engery and courage to take on three defenders before threading the ball to Welbeck, who calmly slotted the ball into the back of the net. The Welbeck-Alexis partnership at its best.
Unfortunately, the reason why Alexis and Welbeck are standing out is a huge problem. It's fantastic that the Emirates have two players with the perfect football attitude. It's fantastic that the North London outfit have two players who won't stop running till they hear the final whistle and the result is somewhat good for the club.
However, football is a team sport, not a two man game. The rest of the team needs to adopt the attitude of these two players, from the first minute to the last minute, not just in the last ten minutes when chasing a game. Too often the team lacks motivation. This is worrying. Is Arséne Wenger no longer capable of motivating his players to put in a good performance? Is Arséne Wenger himself lacking the motivation to succeed? That's a topic for another day. Fans will hope and pray that Alexis and Welbeck will stop standing out but the whole team will for their tireless work as a unit, which will undoubtedly lead to wonders for the club.