If Arsenal are to have any chance against Chelsea at Wembley in this weekend’s FA Cup final, they’re going to have to take their chances when they fall.

That’s easier said than done against a team whose title-winning side has been adept at defending deep and hitting their opponents on the break with devastation wreaked by a prolific attack. And between the two, there’s N’Golo Kante.

With Arsenal’s defence quite clearly in a state of crisis ahead of the final, it might be all down to their attack - a test bordering on the impossible against Chelsea, especially this season.

And yet, when you look at the stats, they clearly have at least one man who can trouble the champions.

Alexis Sanchez has been the form man this season for the Gunners. Arsene Wenger put his faith in the Chilean by playing him as a central striker for much of the season, and he has been repaid: 29 goals in all competitions speaks volumes for a man who is said to be unhappy at the club. You wouldn’t know it from his goalscoring record.

Only two players have had more shots in the Premier League than Sanchez this season. Sergio Aguero and Christian Eriksen both have more but only barely and of the three, Sanchez has more goals.

The obvious reason this might bode well for the Gunners is that they have a goalscorer in their ranks. But there’s a less obvious reason, too.

For one thing, Chelsea’s deep defence makes breaking them down quite difficult. Only Tottenham and Manchester United conceded fewer goals this season, and the extra man in defence since going to a back three helps them out on this front, too. From an Arsenal point of view, that will probably mean spending much of the evening playing in front of Chelsea, passing it around in the hope of creating an opening. The most likely one, though, could well be an attempt from distance, or at least around the edge of the box.

That’s where Sanchez is dangerous.

Cup finals are often decided by a player who sparks something out of nothing or from an energetic winger skipping away from defenders. Finals come at the end of the season, legs are tired and minds even more so.

For Arsenal, victory on Saturday won’t necessarily be about making lots of chances, just about taking them when they come. With Sanchez’s proven lethality this season, their defensive issues might not be the deciding factor in the end.

https://video.footballfancast.com/video-2015/wenger-hypocrite.mp4