Alexis Sanchez proving a match winner for Arsenal

Alexis Sanchez has five goals for Arsenal so far this season. Michael Regan / Getty Images / October 25, 2014

With goals an ever more precious commodity in the Premier League, finding a player capable of delivering them at crucial moments is the fine line between success and failure.

Sergio Aguero and Diego Costa may be the favourites to finish as the Premier League’s top goalscorer but for clubs with lesser budgets, owning a game-changer could be the difference between relegation and survival; never mind Champions League and Europa League qualification.

Here we analyse the players having a big impact on their clubs’ results.

Alexis Sanchez’s move to Arsenal was one of the costlier transfers of the summer, but the former Barcelona star is proving his worth. Sanchez took his goal tally to five for the season with a double against Sunderland last weekend; his second at the Stadium of Light was the only time he has scored to extend a lead: the other four occasions he has found the net have taken Arsenal into a winning position.

For Newcastle United, Papiss Cisse’s return to first-team action has sparked an upturn in results for Alan Pardew: three of his four goals have been equalisers. His other goal reduced the deficit against Hull City, the first of two which rescued a point for the Magpies.

Saido Berahino has started this season in tremendous form, scoring seven goals of which five have changed the flow of the game. Since last season 10 of the West Brom striker’s 12 goals have been either equalisers or given his side the lead. Staying calm under pressure would appear no problem for the young forward.

Burnley’s Danny Ings and QPR’s Charlie Austin have remarkably similar records since the start of last season. With 22 and 21 goals respectively, the percentage of goals which changed the course of a game stands at 81 per cent for Austin and 81.8 per cent for Ings. This is even more impressive given that both players featured for the Championship’s top two teams last season where being in the lead was a regular occurrence, yet they still managed to score the significant goals for their sides, rather than those which extended leads.

No analysis of game-changing goals would be complete without an honourable mention of Steven Gerrard. The Liverpool captain’s 15 goals since the start of last season have altered the dynamic of matches on 73 per cent of occasions, with three equalisers and eight strikes giving the club a lead, compared to just 59 per cent of teammate Daniel Sturridge’s goals and 33 per cent of Raheem Sterling’s efforts.

Follow us on Twitter @SprtNationalUAE