Alexis Sánchez looks like the kind of player who is so completely absorbed by chasing the touch of a football he would play the same way in any circumstances. Assessing the Chilean’s excellent start to life at Arsenal, Arsène Wenger wonders whether Sánchez’s game has shifted as he has emerged out of the shadow of Lionel Messi – something that comes with the territory for most attacking players at Barcelona.

An illustrious list have found the going a little more challenging than expected at the Camp Nou, with the team set up around the pivotal attacking dazzle of Messi. Thierry Henry, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and, to an extent, David Villa all had to adjust their natural game. “It’s not easy in a team where you have such a dominant figure as Messi,” Wenger says. “The game naturally goes through the strong point so in Barcelona the game goes through Messi. It means the other players become a bit more peripheral. You could see now when you watch Barcelona, Suárez was a super dominant figure at Liverpool and sometimes you think: ‘Where is he?’ I’m certain he will find his place but it’s not easy for the players there.”

Sánchez, who has been a breath of fresh air at the Emirates, gets more of the ball and can be more free with his runs at Arsenal than was the case at Barcelona. He also has the total support and admiration of the public – in his first couple of seasons at the Camp Nou the crowd would get on his back if he made a loose touch, such were the high standards to which they were accustomed from graduates of La Masia.

Since finding his feet at Arsenal (which didn’t take long) he has scored 14 goals from his past 18 appearances. Wenger is amazed by his physical capabilities. “He has quality that in the morning he comes in and he is fresh. I don’t know what he does overnight!” Despite a reaction to that comment flavoured with a little innuendo, Wenger did not have anything too spicy in mind.

The energy levels need taking care of, though, and Wenger will give Sánchez a week of rest after Saturday’s game at Stoke. He will not travel to Turkey for the Champions League match at Galatasaray. It is a more truncated winter break than he is used to, but according to Wenger, still necessary.

“He is in the red zone,” said Wenger. “You can see that when he plays but he can dig deep. I will have to give him a week’s break at some stage. I have to give him a breather. I did it with many players before who were playing every game. I did it with Henry, with Van Persie and it always helped them to get through without being injured.

“He played his 27th game on Wednesday since the start of the season, if you consider international games and travelling on top of that. Unfortunately you never know how far you can push it. We are not scientific enough to predict that completely but he has good recovery potential. He recovers very quickly.”

Sánchez remains at the forefront of the manager’s plans as Saturday’s trip to Stoke approaches, and Wenger has more immediate concerns with his defence. With Nacho Monreal out potentially for several weeks having torn ankle ligaments, Arsenal are very low on numbers at the back. Kieran Gibbs is nursing a hip injury and Laurent Koscielny requires caution as he manages his inflamed achilles. Wenger, who needs them both this weekend, spoke of “calculated gambles” in assessing how soon and how much the at risk players can play.

Stoke is an assignment that tends to Arsenal but Wenger is not concerned that Sánchez will be in any way overwhelmed. “Look, he’s a guy who likes big games, and for me that is the most important thing in a big player. It’s a kind of leadership on the pitch. He does not say out of the game: ‘I want to do this, I want to do that,’ but on the pitch he is a leader.” He has become a vital one very quickly for Arsenal.