Topics: Alexis Sanchez, Arsene Wenger, Brendan Rodgers, Mario Balotelli, Luis Suarez, Liverpool, Arsenal, English Premier League
After pulling out all the stops to land the Chilean, Sanchez will show Liverpool what they missed when the Gunners travel to Anfield on Sunday.

This weekend, Arsenal will travel to Anfield to lock horns with Liverpool as they seek revenge for last season’s horrendous 5-1 defeat, with Alexis Sanchez set to come up against the team that went all out to sign La Roja star last summer.

It is well documented that Brendan Rodgers was after Alexis Sanchez. After Uruguayan superstar, last season’s European Golden Boot winner (alongside Cristiano Ronaldo) and the PFA Player of the Year recipient Luis Suarez left Anfield in a mega-money switch to Barcelona, the Merseyside club went into a frantic search for his replacement.

Sanchez was earmarked as the ideal man. After his outstanding season with Barcelona, in which he scored 19 goals in La Liga, a personal best for the Chilean, and an impressive run with his national team at the 2014 World Cup, the 25-year-old’s services were in high demand.

However, unfortunately for Liverpool, whether it was down to his preference for Arsenal, his liking for London, or whether Arsene Wenger pulled on his seductive smile and charmed Sanchez into booking a ticket for the England capital, the former Udinese attacker snubbed the Reds for a move to the Emirates Stadium.

“Not to get him was obviously bitterly disappointing, because he was identified for us as someone who would have been a key signing and really just a roll-on to what we had with Luis Suarez,” Rodgers revealed about their failure to land the Arsenal attacker prior to his north London switch, in a pre-match press conference for the clash with the Gunners.

“If you look at how I ask the teams to play, it is critical. Not just with the ball but the intensity with the pressing.

The Northern Irishman eventually turned to Italian ace Mario Balotelli for £16m, a move which turned out to be a not so good deal for both club and player.

Sanchez will definitely be looking to show Liverpool what they missed when Wenger’s crew face the 18-time English champions. Here are five of his most interesting stats ahead of Sunday’s mouth-watering encounter.

1-) Sanchez‘s Arsenal career so far (goals and assists everywhere!)

Sanchez's stats (pic via ESPN FC)

Alexis Sanchez, Arsenal, English Premier League

Alexis Sanchez has undoubtedly been Arsenal’s star player of the season. The fans know it; football pundits will agree with it, there is no debate. One needs to look no further than the Chilean’s stats at the Emirates. With only 24 games under his belt with the north London side (in all competitions), Sanchez has already found the back of the net 14 times, and has racked up six assists, the most number of goals and assists by any Gunners ace this season.

2-) Sanchez vs. Liverpool

Last time Arsene Wenger’s side visited Anfield, they were ruthlessly thrashed 5-1. This season, however, not many expect a repeat. Liverpool are just a shadow of the side that came close to winning the English Premier League crown last season, as they sit in eleventh spot with 21 points from 16 matches.

Liverpool, who under the leadership of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge registered a whopping 101 goals, has only scored 19 times in total this season. Now compare that to what Sanchez has managed single-handedly and you will see the former Blaugrana man is just one goal shy of scoring half as many goals as the Merseyside club.

Liverpool have scored only 19 times this season as a team (pic via premierleague.com)

Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, English Premier League

3-) Sanchez vs. Liverpool’s forwards

After Luis Suarez’s stellar season at Anfield, many expected he would be missed at Anfield after the Uruguayan departed for Barcelona. Signing Mario Balotelli, Rickie Lambert, and Lazar Markovic last summer in order to spread the goalscoring load, the aforementioned trio has failed to spearhead Liverpool’s attack with great efficiency.

Balotelli is still in search of his first English Premier League goal for the Reds, with Fabio Borini yet to score this season. Lambert has only scored once for Liverpool. Out since August, Daniel Sturridge, who has only made three appearances in England’s top-flight this time around due to reoccurring injury issues, has found the back of the net on one occasion, whilst Raheem Sterling, the club’s top-scorer, has scored three times.

But it is not only in the goalscoring department where Liverpool’s attack is letting down the fans. Sanchez has scored nine goals in his debut season in England, but he has been hailed for his work rate across all corners of the pitch. This shows in the Arsenal number 12’s stats. While Lambert, Balotelli, Borini, Sturridge and Sterling have managed a combined 15 interceptions and 36 tackles in 3053 minutes, Sanchez has managed 16 and 29 in only 1228 minutes.

Alexis Sanchez, Rickie Lambert, Mario Balotelli, Fabio Borini, Daniel Sturridge, Raheem Sterling, Arsenal, Liverpool, English Premier League

4-) Sanchez vs. Sterling

Sanchez has been applauded all season. England star Raheem Sterling, on the other hand, has been blasted and criticized for his performance recently. Stats show the two are not so far off each other, though.

Although Alexis blows away Sterling in the goalscoring charts, and in the minutes per goal section, the Liverpool ace has racked up 4 assists so far, only one less than Sanchez.

Alexis Sanchez, Raheem Sterling, Arsenal, Liverpool, English Premier League

5-) Comparing Sanchez to Suarez

"They [Sanchez and Suarez] have similarities,” Wenger recently stated when comparing the two South American strikers. “They are South Americans, they are provoking players, they go with the ball. They are very determined as well, both of them. They have plenty of similar attitudes."

It is not surprising that Sanchez is being compared to Suarez. Other than the fact that they both come from the same continent, the hunger and drive shown by the 25-year-old Chilean bears in resemblance to that displayed by the Uruguayan during his days in England.

Sanchez vs. Suarez in their 1st eight games in the EPL (via OptaJoe)

Alexis Sanchez, Luis Suarez, Arsenal, Liverpool, English Premier League

Alexis began life in England far off better than Suarez, scoring five times in his first eight games, compared to Suarez’s two. In this exact point of the Uruguayan ace’s last season in England, he registered six more goals than the Chilean, at 15 and 9 respectively, but with one less assist, at four and five respectively.

If Wenger gets the tactics right, Sanchez looks destined to take center stage at Anfield, and with the Reds defensive frailties, the Chilean could end up punishing Liverpool on Sunday.