3 Head-To-Head Battles That Will Decide Newcastle Vs Arsenal

1. WING - Florian Thauvin (NUFC) Vs Alexis Sanchez (AFC)

Newcastle United have traded one French attacking player for another this summer as Florian Thauvin arrived from Marseille, with Remy Cabella going the other way. A magnificent home debut for Thauvin saw the winger score and contribute three assists during the 4-1 Capital One Cup Second-Round victory over Northampton Town on Tuesday. Alexis Sanchez meanwhile was one of the signings of last summer, trading Barcelona for Arsenal and lighting up the Premier League in 2014-15. In terms of their appearances last season, Thauvin played 36 Ligue 1 games for Marseille (32 as a starter, four off the bench). He scored a reasonable five goals for a winger, and contributed a semi-decent four assists. Sanchez on the other hand played 35 times in the Premier League (34 as a starter, one off the bench) - and he scored an incredible 16 goals as one of Arsenal's primary attackers. He contributed just one assist, however.

As the fulcrum of Arsenal's attack, Sanchez shades quite a few attacking stats compared to Thauvin - he averaged a greater number of key passes per game (2.3 to 1.5), dribbles per match (3.3 to 2.3), as well as shots per fixture (3.5 to 2.0). Sanchez was also fouled on a more regular basis than Thauvin (2.1 times per game to 1.3). Interestingly, Thauvin did have a slightly better pass-completion ratio (77.2% to 76.8%) and was dispossessed less frequently (2.6 times per match to 3.3) than Sanchez, but apart from assists he does not lead the comparison in any other offensive areas.

Verdict: Alexis Sanchez Florian Thauvin could turn into a Premier League star but he is yet to play regularly in England's top flight and had a mixed season for Marseille in 2014-15. Sanchez meanwhile scored a staggering 16 league goals during the last campaign and was one of the best players in the entire division, so this one is a fairly easy choice right now. For all the latest NUFC News, Views and Transfers make sure to follow WhatCulture.com/NUFC on Twitter and Facebook.