Manchester City coach Manuel Pellegrini has praised the form of his fellow Chilean Alexis Sanchez, saying the Arsenal attacker is currently the "big star of English football."
Sanchez, 26, has been a revelation this season at the Emirates Stadium, scoring 17 goals and providing eight assists in his 25 games since joining the Gunners for around 35 million pounds from Barcelona last summer.
The City boss told AS that he was happy to see that the effort and commitment shown by his compatriot was paying off so spectacularly in England.
"I see him making a great effort game after game, showing a big commitment and with ambition and maturity to want to keep progressing year after year," Pellegrini said. "I am very happy for him, as at the moment he is the big star of English football."
Asked if Sanchez's excellent form this campaign was due to him no longer having to work hard for Lionel Messi at Barca, Pellegrini said instead that the two years at the Camp Nou had helped the now 26-year-old to develop as a player.
"Alexis has gone along progressing, and his spell at Barcelona was very useful," he said. "Also he was able to share a dressing-room with great players for some years."
Pellegrini believes a big part of this progress was that the former Udinese player had increased the number of goals he was scoring, adding: "The only you could criticise Alexis for him during his career was that he did not score many goals. He was not a goalscorer. But he has improved notably in this over recent years."