Davinson Sanchez: Could he be a future Virgil van Dijk?

In 2017 Davinson Sanchez joined the growing list of central defenders to make the switch from Ajax to Tottenham Hotspur. Following in the footsteps of Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld, Sanchez joined Spurs for what seemed a huge transfer fee for a 21-year-old of £42 million.

With much talk recently about the transformation that Virgil van Dijk has made to the Liverpool defence, this piece will profile Sanchez and examine whether the young Colombian could prove to be equal value for money in the coming years.

Rarely has a defender had such a transformative effect on a side than Van Dijk has at Liverpool. Top clubs will surely be on the lookout for players of a similar profile who can make a similar impact as the complete Dutchman. Could the Colombian international fit a similar mould?

Background

When Sanchez arrived in North London, he came fresh off the back of an impressive run to the Europa League final with a resurgent Ajax. This followed being named player of the season at the Amsterdam Arena. The consensus at the time from an English media perspective was that Spurs had grossly overpaid for a kid who had one season of top flight experience in a inferior league.

This judgement was probably also clouded by the fact that Jose Mourinho had deliberately targeted him in the 2017 Europa League final. Manchester United left him on the ball to stop Matthijs de Ligt (Sanchez’s defensive partner) from building Ajax attacks. The first opportunity an English audience had got a chance to see what he was all about was him having a somewhat torrid evening in Stockholm.

Spurs however were not deterred and parted way with their cash  not something that they do lightly  and he was soon making his debut for the North Londoners. It soon became apparent that Sanchez was not only a prospect for the future, but a signing for the here and now. He went on to make 31 Premier League appearances for Spurs in 2017/18.

This was an impressive feat for a young central defender being thrust into a team competing for honours on all fronts. Sanchez turned out to be pivotal in a Spurs side that finished third and reached the Champions League last 16.

Profile

In the 2017/18 Premier League Tottenham conceded just 9.4 shots a game (Van Dijk’s Liverpool a measly 7.4). Sanchez slotted easily into a tremendous Spurs defensive line, both as a part of a back three and four. His performances minimised the impact of losing Toby Alderweireld for much of the season due to injury and contractual issues.

Stylistically, Tottenham are an aggressive front-foot team who generally like to dominate the ball and play in the opposition half. Central defenders must therefore possess a broad skill set on both sides of the ball for the system to function effectively.

For this reason, defenders at Spurs (like Van Dijk at Liverpool) must be excellent ground defenders, capable of defending large spaces in behind as Spurs are often camped in their opponents half. With full-backs stationed high up the pitch they must also be adept at defending outside the width of the penalty area in full back positions.

They must be excellent in transition and defending counter-attacks where 1v1s at high speed are contested, making recovery runs, and defending low crosses whilst running at pace towards their own goal.

Possession-dominant teams like Spurs are often targeted with long balls and set-pieces. Being able to defend these types of attacks becomes even more important for Spurs centre-backs.

They must have good qualities in bringing the ball out of defence. This includes driving into midfield with the ball, playing forward passes that break lines or long diagonal switches. They must also be excellent at receiving the ball close to their own goal, and retaining or progressing the ball.

With Liverpool, Van Dijk was the perfect stylistic fit. Did Spurs get the right player when they signed Sanchez, and will he go on to hit the same heights as he matures and reaches his peak?

Defensive attributes

Davinson Sanchez absolutely loves defending. He is aggressive, proactive and positively exuberant in the way he goes about his business. Here we can see just some of the situations that Sanchez is faced with on a regular basis.

Here Sanchez demonstrates his proactive and aggressive style of defending, as he steps up on the defensive transition to close down and win the ball back from in the opposition half. There is risk attached to this element of his game. With vast space left behind him, he leaves his position as the last man to win the ball, although he does begin to close down the space before the opponent has turned. A more ruthless team than Swansea may see this as a weakness to be exposed, possibly with up, back and through combinations.

Once again Sanchez finds himself as the last man defending against a transition. Here he shows good anticipation of the counterattack and makes a positive decision to intercept the ball.

His pace