An inspired performance from Alexis Sanchez saw the Gunners dismantle the Foxes, consigning the home side to their first defeat of the season.
Sanchez’s slow start to the season has attracted a lot of publicity of late, but the Chilean quashed such speculation emphatically, netting a hat-trick to kick-start his goal tally for the current campaign, including a superb strike from distance in the 81st minute.
The game was played at a frenetic pace, particularly in the first half, in which the play was end-to-end. Neither side were particularly interested in taking the pace out of the contest, leading to plenty of chances on goal.
This seemingly played into Leicester’s hands, taking the lead on 13 minutes when Danny Drinkwater’s inch-perfect diagonal ball found Jamie Vardy in full flight, using his trademark pace to beat Petr Cech to his left.
The Gunners were quick to respond, however, and in keeping with the theme of proceedings, they broke quickly, with Santi Cazorla playing in Theo Walcott in the 18th minute, who calmly placed his shot in to the bottom corner, across the oncoming Kasper Schmeichel.
From that point in time, Arsenal seemed to settle, who took control of the game from then on.
Jamie Vardy scored a consolation for the home side, his second for the game, continuing his impressive scoring run.
Olivier Giroud came off the bench and netted in the dying stages of the contest, providing the exclamation point on what was a fantastic spectacle.
Formations
Neither manager provided any surprises in their selections, nor in their formations.
Leicester boss Claudio Ranieri stuck to his favoured 4-4-2 formation, allowing Shinji Okazaki and Vardy to continue their successful strike partnership to date. N’Golo Kante had his impressive form rewarded, partnering the ever-present Drinkwater in the centre of midfield.
Leicester City XI (4-4-2): Schmeichel (GK); de Laet, Huth, Morgan, Schlupp; Mahrez, Kante, Drinkwater, Albrighton; Okazaki, Vardy.
Arsene Wegner opted for his usual 4-2-3-1, with Walcott still favoured over Giroud, allowing for the fast-break counter-attacks witnessed throughout. Midweek hero Mathieu Flamini was rewarded for his performance against Tottenham in the League Cup, getting the nod in midfield to replace the injured Francis Coquelin. Flamini, however, was withdrawn in the 21st minute, succumbing to a hamstring injury.
Arsenal XI (4-2-3-1): Cech (GK); Bellerin, Mertsacker, Koscielny, Monreal; Flamini, Cazorla; Ozil, Sanchez, Ramsey; Walcott.
Sanchez shows his class
Following a sluggish start to the season, no doubt a result of an extremely busy off-season due to national commitments, Sanchez reminded everyone of his quality, clearly the best player afield on Saturday.
His hat-trick sees him become the first player to complete the feat in Italy, Spain and England’s top flight competitions.
His game was almost the complete performance, including seven shots, three chances created, 78% pass completion and seven take-ons.
.
Sanchez was successful in each of his seven take-ons, ensuring a nightmare day at the office for Leicester’s right side, particularly Riyad Mahrez, whom Sanchez beat on four separate occasions.
He also drifted inside with great regularity, to dangerous effect.
Mahrez threat nullified
Mahrez, despite his best efforts, struggled to have any meaningful impact on the game, a rarity so far this season.
His statistics do not make for bad reading, with four shots, three chances created and 12 take-ons attempted, nine of which were successful.
However, Mahrez was often frustrated throughout, unable to penetrate into the box for the majority of the game and perhaps guilty of trying to overplay. Of all his successful take-ons, only one was in the final third.
Of his four shots, two were blocked, one was saved and one failed to hit the target from long-range.
On the flip side, Mahrez was also hurt defensively, which is not his strong-suit. Nacho Monreal not only kept Mahrez quiet, but also provided two assists going forward. As previously mentioned, Sanchez also took on Mahrez successfully four times.
Leicester’s defence under too much pressure
Arsenal led the shot count 26-16, but tellingly, it was where the shots were being taken from that would be concerning for Ranieri.
Alarmingly, all but four of the attempts on goal for the Gunners were inside the box (one of the four resulting in a goal). Eleven of these shots were blocked, however, it was indicative of the immense pressure the defence were under, unable to keep out Arsenal’s attackers, who between them had only scored five goals prior to this game.
Arsenal were quick and incisive, with many of the shots taken in central areas. Most of these were taken in the second half (18), which was clearly a result of the pace in the game and as the home side tired, they were unable to get numbers behind the ball as the game wore on.
Conclusion
Although gallant throughout, Leicester were outclassed by a side who were much more fancied, particularly prior to the season.
The Foxes would have enjoyed the openness of play in the opening exchanges, however the blistering pace of the game eventually brought about their downfall.
Arsenal will be relieved to come away from the King Power Stadium with three points, and were more than deserving of their win, proving their threat when given the space to play.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook
