The Mesut Özil Thread

[northbank123]

3 or 4 times tonight we had the chance to counter-attack and Ozil was moving the ball forward at deceptive pace but the only player in front of him (Giroud) made runs that even for a pacey, tricky striker would be counter-productive and harmless and Ozil had to grind to a halt and give it to him to lose possession.

I'm not saying it excuses/explains his poor form but imagine with the choice, weight and timing of his passing if Ozil had a striker with a bit of pace who made clever runs in front of him.

[swimmer1]

3 or 4 times tonight we had the chance to counter-attack and Ozil was moving the ball forward at deceptive pace but the only player in front of him (Giroud) made runs that even for a pacey, tricky striker would be counter-productive and harmless and Ozil had to grind to a halt and give it to him to lose possession.

I'm not saying it excuses/explains his poor form but imagine with the choice, weight and timing of his passing if Ozil had a striker with a bit of pace who made clever runs in front of him.

Agree he held on to the ball well looking for the killer pass but Giroud was running with his lead football boots ozil has been shit of late but thought he was our best outfield player tonight although not saying much

[donaldo]

If Dennis Bergkamp had Giroud in front of him he would pack up playing.Thanks Wenger for not signing a striker with pace a good first touch and who can finish.

[King Henry]

Exactly what I was thinking today. There were a few times where Ozil raced forward looking to counter, looks up and all there is is Giroud basically running sideways right next to a defender. The guy will be lethal when he actually has runners alongside him, even Ramsey isn't exactly a sprinter but at least he makes clever runs into space and it's no coincidence we saw Ozil's best form when Ramsey was in the team.

[I Hate Hleb]

Well not doubting Ozil's class, It's his inability/unwillingness to take things by the scruff of the neck that is most frustrating for me. Okay, he hasn't got good options on: well try something individual then rather than taking the easy way out and giving a three yard pass to someone in an even less threatening position!! That seems to have been the sum total of his attacking intent for a little while now.

[augie]

Still not at full power for me but I did think that he was much improved tonight and there is no doubt that the lack of players with pace to run onto his passes is greatly hindering his performances. I was happy enough with him tonight

[I Hate Hleb]

You may have been happy but after the recent criticism he was under pressure to come good tonight and show people some the the reasons why he is/was so highly rated. Unfortunately he didn't.

[augie]

You may have been happy but after the recent criticism he was under pressure to come good tonight and show people some the the reasons why he is/was so highly rated. Unfortunately he didn't.

But he was under pressure to show more work ethic tonight and a willingness to get on the ball more and imo he did that

[falkirk goon]

Last season ozil was threading passes to ronaldo benzema and higuain..this season he has giroot tripping over the ball, heading wide etc

[Chippy]

Imagine Ozil passing to TH14. Imagine that AW loser.

[Number 5]

Ozil at Arsenal = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILkkpMEzlZY

[Theoperator]

You may have been happy but after the recent criticism he was under pressure to come good tonight and show people some the the reasons why he is/was so highly rated. Unfortunately he didn't.

But he was under pressure to show more work ethic tonight and a willingness to get on the ball more and imo he did that

This- he played well, really stepped up to his credit, several good runs and silky passes, but why oh why isnt Pod playing who has surely had a certain degree of understanding playing internationally with Ozil over the years- its completely utterly and incomprehensibly baffling.

[northbank123]

I didn't think last night was much different from his general level of performance (bar Liverpool) over the last few months.

You could see his quality just from the way that he shifts or retains the ball without panicking. But as ever it was the quality/threat was bubbling under the surface rather than bursting out, as ever he would have been far more effective with a good striker and other attacking options, as ever he was an important part of most of our play and performed diligently without taking the game by the scruff of the neck.

Seems like most people's opinions on him are becoming polarised, hence the need for every performance to be assessed as very good or awful.

[LDB]

I could count on one hand the number of times he had a meaningful forward pass available to him when picking up the ball in the united half. Ozil is a passer, that's his game but at the moment without Ramsey or Theo is there is nobody creating any space in the final third. Wilshere tried to fill that role but his instincts are mainly to retain possession and he lacks Ramsey's athleticism.

A solution needs to be found quickly if we're going to make any impact in these big games.

[Nos89]

thought ozil looked better tonight, always looking forward, looked strong and a bit frustrated when all he could do was pass the ball backwards. Kinda hope he starts against Liverpool as I think he will put in a super show.