New look Man United could be ready to conquer Europe after long wait

[Photo: Courtesy]

A famous comparison was once made between basketball and football. It argued that in the case of the former, adding one star player to a team could win a championship, with the obvious example being Lebron James at the Cleveland Cavaliers. For football, the opposite is true; teams are only as good as their weakest player. Such are the tight margins in a football match that one mistake by a poor defender or goalkeeper can cost a match, and ultimately, a title.

However, now and again a player joins a football team and becomes that final piece in the puzzle, offering such talismanic quality that the whole team is lifted as a result. It has happened in the past with the likes Eric Cantona joining Manchester United, or Denis Bergkamp being the catalyst for Arsène Wenger’s early success at Arsenal. It is too early to suggest that Alexis Sanchez will have that impact on Manchester United’s fortunes, but the signs are there that his signing could be transformative.