In defence of Ozil – How do you define a world class player?

How do judge and define world class players? (A reply to Darren’s article) by Eddie

Well that didn’t take long did it? After the game I pointed out how I was waiting for some people to blame Ozil BECAUSE I knew they would lay the blame at his feet.

This article is a response to the article earlier about Ozil. We can go on all day and we’ll never come to a conclusion on this topic, so we lost a game in which Ozil alongside Lacazette and Leno were the only ones who played and fought like they needed a win. We got zero points and now we’re back to discussing Ozil isn’t world class?

First, how do you define a world class player? There are world class players out there but they all have times and seasons, they pick form and drop form. The two players the whole world can vouch for to be world class for sure and can depend on are Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. They’ve been the only players delivering every weekend for the past ten years or so. Even at that they can’t do it all alone, they lose games but you don’t see their fans ranting and saying all sorts of stuff about them and saying they’re average players.

How do you judge players just because the team loses? How do you go on writing and poking down a player for the failures of others?

Lionel Messi despite how influential he is, needs top players, he has them all over the pitch surrounding him, making his work easier, he’s free to do what he knows how to do just because he’s certain he can look back and his teammates will make stuff easier.

Messi alone wouldn’t win the game against Manchester United if he didn’t have those world class players to ease the pressure off him. Messi alone wouldn’t have destroyed Arsenal years ago if he never had world class players behind him easing off the pressure and making his life easier. You want to kick a man down and blame him for the incompetence of others?

Ronaldo had world class players all over the pitch at Madrid, each one doing their jobs so he can do his, Ronaldo has good players at Juventus and he’s world class, tell me why you don’t see fans calling him shít just because they lost to a certain young Ajax team? You want to kick a player and always blame him? Ronaldo did all his best, got Juventus to the Quarter Finals, tried his best against Ajax but had his teammates all playing poorly and everyone depending on him like he’s some god, he alone wouldn’t mark, he alone wouldn’t defend, he alone wouldn’t assist himself to score goals, he alone wouldn’t run with the ball all the way to the touchline, whip a cross in and run into the box to go head in his own cross. You think a player can do it all on his own?

Messi is god-like but Messi ain’t no god, Messi would tell you that having Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Rakitic, Villa, Neymar, Suarez, and others in his team made it all easier for him to enjoy himself on the pitch.

Talk about kicking a man for the stupidity of others, Sanchez was world class before he left us, tell me why he didn’t stay and choose to do it all by himself? Why did he see the chance to escape from the likes of Mustafi, Xhaka, Iwobi, Kolasinac, and others. Why did he jump at the chance to escape from that terror?? Wasn’t he world class? He scored goals and tried his best but we still ended up in the Europa league didn’t we?

So I ask again, how do you define a world class player? Will you surround Messi with the likes of Iwobi, Xhaka, Mhiki, Jenkinson, Elneny and Mustafi and expect him to tear the league apart?

Will you Surround Ronaldo with those players and expect him to do all the work?

Will you surround Hazard with those players and expect to win the EPL?

We make use of Silva, DeBruyne for examples, here’s an honest question will those players switch places from playing with that City squad to playing with this Arsenal squad?

Ask yourself, if you were a professional footballer will you switch teammates the quality of City, Barcelona, Madrid,Bayern, PSG, Chelsea to come play with the boys at Arsenal.

Ozil is with us, so because we can’t get to the UCL, because we can’t win the league, it makes Ozil an average player, It makes Ozil a bad player?

This team is the definition of poor at best, Ozil has nothing to do with this. You might as well use the facts next time before saying stuffs.

Once again, how do you define world class players and what kinda teammates do the play with?

Eddie Hoyte

58 Comments

  1. With Ozil we often hear he’s not world class because he needs good players around him. I ask, what world class player doesn’t need good players around him? Let us use pogba for an example. The pogba in Juve, world class, pogba in man u, not world class. I’m not saying Ozil is on the level of Rolando or Messi but even then won’t seem like world class players with arsenal.

    1. When i look at top players, what separates them for me is CONSISTENCY. I agree ozil is technically gifted, amongst the most talented to ever play in the epl, but he lacks consistency. Ozil can have a 10/10 performance today and the next game a 2/10. His performance are too far apart, i’m not saying he must have a 10/10 every game because even messi doesn’t but when you are not playing well, at least have an imfluence and have a solid 5/10 performance and not be completely anonymous.

      Yes, he needs better players around him like every player but he’s past his prime and so he’s never going to improve and i don’t expect to to. Also, i think his too soft for the epl, he doesn’t fight as much and before you say i only want him to run around like a headless chicken, check man city’s midfielders. David silva, bernardo silva and de bruyne all work harder than him. The modern game requires hardworking midfielders and i think ozil fall short as regards this just like pogba who is equally talented but doesn’t want to do the dirty work off the ball.

      When ozil was younger especially in werder bremen and early madrid, he worked harder than he does now, and i think it will be unfair to expect him to be that same player, the problem is that fans still think he is that good and anybody that criticises him doesn’t understand football. Personally, i think it’s time for both arsenal and ozil to move on from each other.

    2. @ArsenalWhy

      But Ozil has got worse since we brought in Torreira, Auba, and Laca. Ozil even has got a solid midfield behind him as Xhaka has stepped up, and formed a solid partnership with Torreira. I get what you’re saying up to a point, but how many more chances does Ozil deserve, or any player?

      1. Ozil is 30. He has been here since 2013 and has not delivered a single consistent season. His time is up. This debate is redundant. We already know the answer. Ozil is still only relevant to world football because of the fact we cant get rid of him and nobody wants him

  2. You see what hazard is doing with a poor Chelsea team , That’s what a world class player does , Why are we not calling Ramsey world class then ? We all know his better than Ozil .Because he hasnt won the world cup or played for Madrid? A world class player in my own books has to be the shinning light , No Arsenal fan can tell me Ozil has played well in 2 seasons . we did thesame with Wenger going back to the glory days , Ozil has not aged well .people thought di Maria was world class at Madrid, Madrid made players look better than they were .We bought a hype now its time to go .

    1. The moment you said Ramsey is better than ozil then I realised you are a word class critic. Ozil that I know used to be in the same bracket with xavi, Iniesta, pirlo, Fabregas and some other good passers of the ball. What a terrible mistake he made to have come to arsenal.

      1. He made a mistake coming to EPL. He can’t hack it here. He has no desire. La Liga compliments him much more. You can’t build a team around such a weak (physically and mentally) player in this league.

        1. Cant hack it yet had the most assists in EPL. Fastest player ever to 50 assists in the EPL. Arsenal player of the year. Have you ever kicked a soccer ball and do you understand what the game is about. I don’t think so with this insane comment. He had a great game against Palace creating chances and scoring. Let down by a fragile defence. However lets buy into the media brainwashing hype about Ozil never performing. absolutely ridiculous.

          1. At the World Cup in 2010 was one of 6 players nominated for player of the tournament. At the age of 21. Yes has aged since then and now 30 but his track record is way more than any other player in the squad.

          2. All a bunch of stat padding. Doesnt translate to success. Name one season Ozil was consistent throughout the entirety of? You can’t because he has never been. Name one top team that wants him in the whole continent? You cannot even do that. That really says it all. Overrated, overpaid.

            1. I know this is about Ozil, RSH… but have any of our players played consistently through a whole season?? I don’t think so.. not even Sanchez

              1. RSH, well old friend, we don’t even have to scour the continents of the world do we?
                You seem to have forgotten a certain club called PSG who were very eager to sign him in January,
                So I have done that, called your bluff and agree that, like every other professional player in the world, he is overpaid.

                Overrated? Perhaps PSG could see more in him than being consistent for a complete season, can you name any one player, including hazard, de bruyne, messi and ronaldo, who has been consistent throughout a season?

                Has it not occurred to you that, once Ozil signed his new contract, turned down PSG and stated publically that he was happy at our club and was going to see out his contract, other clubs took that as a sign that it would be a waste of time and energy to try and prise him away, just as kane has done at spuds for example.

                Unlike our transfer team, who spend complete transfer windows trying to sign one player, other clubs get the message, move on and go for players who might be tempted by the lure of the dollar.

                I must say as well, that your dismissal of Gunner since 1971 facts he presented to you, followed by an incorrect claim about no top team being interested in Ozil, does show that the saying “fact over fiction” should be reversed as far as you are concerned on the Ozil issue.

  3. I think Aubamayeng is world class!! Does what he knows best. He scores and alot in fact.. He’s missed sitters this season but is still the top scorer. He may not influence a game much in terms of linking play, hold up play, but his postioning in the box is World class.
    Ozil is not world class. Lets face it. He might have been when he was at RM but that is no longer the case. Why did they sell him anyway if he was that good?? If you a lazy player you must have statistics to back up the laziness and not blame it on others. Look at Zlatan, incredible player and didnt work alot but was world class and he got away with it. Even Berbatov was a good player, lazy, but good as he always scored!! Ozil in a tough game will shy off thus no contribution will be a passenger through out!!
    Ozil has to blame only himself!! He has two of the best forwards in the world but still struggle because ” he has no world class players around him”??!!! That is crap and he is crap. Apart from the first half of his fisrt season here he has been crap!! He is average.. Would City, liverpool, barca, rm, paris g or even tottenham take him??? even man u with all their problems wouldnt want him.
    He played well yesterday but!! We know Ozil he will go back to his lacklustre performance soon enough especially in away games!!

    1. I’m not sure where this myth about ozil can’t play away as come from .one of the most absurd things I’ve read on here .
      All we here about ozil is ,his wages and this “he can’t play in tuff away games “

      1. Ozil is not even the real problem here. I think he should just be sold because his wages would be better spent elsewhere.
        Our real problem is in defence. We need a towering cb. A good natural winger who acn really reck havoc in oppostions defense unlike Iwobi!!! Zaha would be nice and if Sane isnt happy!! hallelujah!! Sell all deadwoods for him!!!
        Midfield is also a problem. Ndombele?? doucoure?? even neves would better our midfield!!
        We should also buy some young players with potential. Was crying for De ligt last summer. Now we will just have to watch him from somewhere. But I believe Maguire would do a Vvd for us. Will be costly though

        1. Elton if Aubameyang was “world class” he would have buried the sitters he has missed, be on 30+ goals and a shoe in for the golden boot and Arsenal would not be struggling for fourth place. His straight forward misses have cost Arsenal dearly.

      2. Xxnofx I think it happened because in “tuff away games “ Emery picked defensive formations, giving Ozil absolutely no one to pass to (the lone striker in such lineups being easily marked out of it by a couple of defenders).
        The myth has since been perpetuated by those who do not really understand football and so simply jump on the bandwagon with other simple/like minded souls.

    2. Yes Genius!! Zlatan and Dimitar both had poor players surrounding them while they were scoring goals and doing those stuffs you mentioned.
      I forgot the games where both Zlatan and Dimitar created chances for themselves, ran all over the pitch defending loosed balls and running to the defense to cover for Javier Zanetti, Thiago Silva, and Rio Ferdinand.
      I forgot those two players you mentioned played with headless chickens

      1. Eddie very nice and honest article,I have promised myself that I will not be commenting on any Ozil post if done by admin. Because Admin is so bias it is annoying. Admin will rather score Mkhitaryan higher understanding any circumstances even though his passes are one of the worst in premier league, I know you have a broader view of football because you understand other leagues outside premier league. Our current team is shitty and our manger doesn’t have a total understanding of what to do. So I don’t know how someone will function, under this present Arsenal team. Ozil is the best creative milder we have, Ramsey is going and Mkhitaryan is the worse Arsenal player even worse than Mustafi. Has to his world class status the guy has so accolades. He is one of the best creative milder in premier league and he plays in a team like ours, God help him.

    3. Elton Rono, why did RM sell Ronaldo then?
      Are you saying that he isn’t world class and that’s why they sold him?
      Why did Ronaldo say that it was the worst decision RM had made because it was Ozil that created more chances for him than any other player?

      You ask about statistics and then completely ignore them when they prove your argument wrong. What statistics have you got to prove your assesment of the player?
      Just go and look at his actual statistics, compare them with any other creative player and then supply the statistics that say he is crap.

      How many times did Zlatan and, especially, Berbatov do what fans on here expect Ozil to do? Did they run back and defend?
      Were they expected to run up and down the pitch just to prove they had commitment?

      You name two “world class players” around him and if you read what they think of him, perhaps you might appreciate exactly what he does for them.
      In fact, while your checking his stats, read the comments from the rest of his temmates and UE himself.

      As a side thought and following your line of thinking, why were Lacs and Aba sold by their clubs if they were “world class”?

      We were the only club in for Aba and I can’t remember any other concrete offer for Lacs either, so does that mean they are average then, if city, pool, barca, rm or spuds weren’t interested.

      I didn’t include PSG, as you seem to have forgotten they actually wanted to sign him in January. I wonder why?

  4. I think I have had enough of these Ozil debates so I will abstain from any discussions about him till the day he retires or is sold. Subsequently, am here to post some good news from the Daily Mail (yeah not the most reliable I know but here is the news nonetheless)

    “Shkodran Mustafi is among the players Unai Emery is looking to kick out of the door at the Emirates this summer, after being told that he will be allowed to reinvest money from sales into his squad.”

    “The departure of Aaron Ramsey to ​Juventus on a free transfer has already been confirmed, but one of the club’s deep bank of mediocre midfielders, El Neny, could follow him out the door for a middling fee; as could one of the club’s three right-backs (most likely Carl Jenkinson)”

  5. Yes…right..if he was world class Man U, City, liverpool, Chelsea or even tottenham would have tried once to sign him. Sad that Arsenal is struggling to offload a world class player.

    1. Exactly.He is at Arsenal for one reason only MONEY.That’s why he will refuse to leave until his contract expires

    2. Yea stupid, and PSG who had plans to go for the UCL wanted him during the Jan Transfer so he’ll be their ball boy

    3. Exactly. He was only ever linked with United, and that was only because of Mourinho being there. Our rivals dont want our highest paid player, so why do we? Get RID.

      1. RSH, get rid of a player because he’s the highest paid and our rivals don’t want him?
        Jeez, what a way to critique your club and it’s players.

        Thank goodness the rest of our players don’t see Ozil in the same way as you do, the complete opposite in fact.

        Ask yourself why the players see him in such a positive way (along with UE), then try and compare your views with theirs.

        Everyone has their opinions, but sometimes it pays to listen to others, especially when they are professionals and are around each other day after day.

        HIGHBURY 44, an interesting comment about Ozil only being at the club for money…can you name me one player who isn’t at the club for the money?
        It is, after all, what everyone goes to work for isn’t it?

        How do you feel about players who sign contracts, then refuse to honour them because another club has tapped them up with the promise of more?
        Are they more principled than Ozil, who just accepted what the club deemed he was worth?

        All Ozil did was to sign a contract agreed by kronkie and initiated by gazidis that all parties involved thought was good for them.
        Nothing wrong so far then is there? Exactly as all employers and employees conduct their business.
        In fact, that’s probably what happened with you and your job.

        Our fans were over the moon when he signed, as Sanchez was already on his way and we proved we were still a “big club” by keeping Ozil.
        Funny how those same fans now want to rewrite history and claim that Ozil is the bad guy don’t you think?

  6. Imagine a team with the following no-hopers lining up in it:
    Elneny, Jenks, Mustafi, Lichtsteiner, Mkhitaryan, Kolasinac and Welbeck. Guaranteed to be beaten by Accrington Stanley . . . reserves (for those who remember the advert) 🙂

    1. A bit unfair on Welback who was performing a solid role for Emery prior to his injury, even scoring goals.

  7. The reason why Ozil is not world class or Arsenal class for that matter is that in any game he can give you a 10 out of 10 moment, however all too often for the rest of the game he disappears, gets shoved off the ball easily, bottles out of challenges, doesn’t track back and only gives 1 out of 10. A world class player is someone that consistently gives 8 out of 10 for every game with the occasional bad game. You can throw stats around all day but I’d rather have a trier with consistent 6 out of 10’s rather than carry this hugely over rated over paid primal Donna!

    1. So Hazard doesn’t have poor games? Especially if played in the wrong position? Did he force the contract on himself? How many percentage of Arsenal fans didn’t want him to sign a new contract?, all the names people kept mentioning, tell me how many of them play in a team as poor as us (players and managers)? You can not do what a manger has not asked you to do on the pitch else he will not pick you again. Has anyone who thought Ozil is not doing well tell me who in our current team can do what he does? Because I remembered Ramsey don’t really know how to measure passes correct as some of his passes are outrageous, and Mkhitaryan (who is on an extremely high wage for what he does) is one of the worst players I have seen in this current squad, worse than Mustafi. You lot should put everything into perspective.

  8. For me, world-class is defined by several factors;

    1. Does the player reach his potential in most games? IMO you can not call yourself world class if you only have 5 or 10 outstanding games a season. You need to deliver your potential every game.

    2. Does the player make a difference to the outcome of games frequently? Whether it is Virgil Van Dijk, Cech in his prime, or RVP all these players earned their teams points on a regular basis.

    3. Can the player reasonably be considered amongst the 3 best in the world for his position?

    4. I know the forth is tough but for me to be considered world class you have to be mostly injury free. PLayers like Micheal Owen and RVP (for a large part of his career), no matter how influential when fit, simply were injured too often to be considered world class.

    5. Has the player collected his statistics in one of the three top leagues? (PL, La Liga, Serie A) No matter how impressive the stats, if you are top scorer in France or you dominate the Dutch league you have not measured yourself against the best.

  9. You don’t have to look at Barcelona or Real Madrid to justify what a WC player can do for a team.The example was just in our back yard-Sanchez.He played in the same mediocre team like Ozil does.An,man,what difference he made.Arsenal was,simply,a one-man-team,with Sanchez doing it all on the pitch-defending,attacking,playmaking,passing,acoring from free kicks….running like a Duracell bunny for 90 minutes .Creating goals and opportunities from nothing.Never gave up.In the same time pleasing the fans with high class dribblings and amazing passes.Showman and efficient in the same time.What Messi is for Barcelona,Sanchez was for Arsenal.Have no idea what to do woth the ball?Pass it to Sanchez,he’s gonna invent something out of nothing.Spectacular,most of the time.Well,this is WC player.Now,compare that with Ozil,the “ invisible player”,playing only home games(against cheap teams) and being a liability for the away games.As you remember,most of the ggoals he scored seasons ago were from Sanchez passes.The truth is-Sanchez was carrying Arsenal in the back from
    the beginning all the way to the end.He never wanted to be rested,he always demanded to play.Almost never injured.And,most important,he was on fire almost all the time.Ten times the player Ozil is.So,in short,is Ozil a WC player?Absolutely not.If he leaves,are we going to be weaker?Absolutely not,he’s invisible anyway.He must go,his time is up,he cannot live from the past.Remember,he was forced to retire from Germany national team for not being good enough and taking other good player’s place.If he was not good for germans,what make you think he’s good for us?Thank you for everything Ozil,but the story is over,it’s no shame in playing in China before retirement(see Iniesta or Xavi,2 giants compared to Ozil).

  10. Same was said about Ramsey, that he would not make the line up in any top club, now he’s off to Juventus, and being paid what arsenal could never offer. Ozil is good and world class. Ramsey is good and world class. It’s not ozil’s fault that the type of clubs that could afford his wages already have suitable and good players his position, and the ones who need him cannot afford his wages.

  11. I just want to give a big thumbs up?to Ken1945, Kenny, Sue. Durand, Pat, Phil, Midkemma & Declan for be brilliant contribution on the previous article on Ozil. Thank you for always bring on board a clear and unbiased voice and perspective to every discussion. You criticize when to and give praise when due. I’m not going to lend any voice to whether Ozil is WC or not has enough had been said but I won’t leave the issue without saying, if Ozil is not a WC player then no player is in the EPL and in fact world if the genius Messi and goal-drunk Ronaldo are the yard stick. According Jon, by the way I love reading your post even though I don’t agree with some them, The term WC is much used & mostly misused. This I 200% agree with. Further he said we all know Messi & Ronaldo are WC for instance- Suarez too and a load of city and Liverpool players- But Ozil. This I completely disagree with. A load of city and Liverpool players? On what basis? How many of those load of players have being scoring btw 40 – 60/65 goals season in and season out from the last 4 to 8 years. How many of those load of players single handily won matches for their team consistently. Jon it is criminal to put Massi and Ronaldo in the class of Mane, Sallah, Aguero, De Britney, etc in other to spite Ozil. Even Suarez and Neymar are remotely close.Whether you like Ozil or not, whether is languish, lazy, timid or disappear in a match or not those load of city and Liverpool players will never be mentioned before him if the history of football were to be written now.

    1. “if Ozil is not a WC player then no player is in the EPL” Why is Ozil the determinant? He’s done nothing special compared to the tons of players that are far more talented and useful to their teams. Ozil is a footnote and his only reputation in this league is for being controversial and an enigma. This article is garbage because it is based off the false conclusion that Ozil can only play well when he is surrounded by other top players. We’ve seen this season him play with Laca and Auba. You really can’t ask for much better strikers than that if you are a “world class” CAM. Forget about defense, Ozil does NOT do enough as a CAM. Is NOT consistent, and is NOT good enough. Even if we go with the theory that everyone else around Ozil is the problem (what a pompous and absurd thing to suggest btw), a world class player lifts up the team when the team may not be as talented as let on. Hazard has almost single handely gave Chelsea titles. Recent Barcelona sides are not nearly as talented as they have been in the past and MESSI is CONSISTENTLY the difference maker in the majority of their games. And the rare times messi is injured Barca’s play drops considerably. World Class players are world class because they can lead their team to the finish line, and make the players around them better. Ozil does not do that. He is an average CAM, and all our rivals have better attacking mids than us. The only reason Ozil is ever in the conversation is because he can have a blinder every few months, his reputation in La Liga/Bundesliga, and he (was) a favorite of Low’s. Now he only lives off of reputation. Nobody cares or wants Ozil in Europe anymore. So if we want to be better, why are we wasting time with him?

  12. No matter how much you defend ozil he is nowhere near world class no more. If KDB or Eriksen or even Sigurdsson were in this team they would be miles better and would actually improve us by a mile.
    Ave supported Ozil since he came and he performed superbly on sunday but he has just not done enough over the years!! We spent a lot on this guy and many of us know that he hasnt lived up to that.
    Aubamayeng and Lacazette are world class strikers. Is he creating enough chances for them?? for the team?? Thats a flat Noo!!!!
    Bring Kdb here and you’ll see what we’ve been missing!!
    Ozil may be world class but not in epl. Take him to any team in epl and you’ll hear the same comments from his fans. Ramsey is way better than him and he’s leaving…
    Ozil just has to show more desire and ambition. He has to try each game, fight it out to the last breathe… not fall down at every oppurtunity … He has to be a leader in this team. At 29 thats the least we can expect as fans… but sadly I dont think he will…
    He will do much better in spain or france

    1. Ramsey better than Ozil? Come now, that’s just silly. Different players in different positions. Ramsey as a 10 is hot garbage everytime it’s tried, remember? On the RW he stinks, so does Ozil. Also, there’s reason Ozil isn’t played as box to box. Even Xhaka tasked with different responsibilities than Ramsey.

      Ramsey having good year, that’s what 2 years out of 10? Just stating the facts not hating. Look at career totals, injury time, discipline in midfield, etc. Lot of managers talk him up, but never made bids to my knowledge.

      Ramsey good for rotation, but not pinning title hopes on him.

      What next, how Ramsey is world class and Ozil is not? Foolish to compare players in different positions.

  13. So, in darrens opinion sanchez WAS world class but ozil IS, still, world class…ozil is technically gifted, thats for sure, but he is not world class or he was world class, ether case, he doesnt deserve to be paid 350k a week. Thats all we have to need, so we have to try to unlock those wages plus others and search for players who can contribute more, (like ramsey, who, start to ahow more of him since emery arrived or since he clsed his deal with juve) and i hope, we can find someone who can contribute like sanchez did.
    We need a lot of quality players. Emery likes to play with two dms…but to that, he needs players who can creates danger for his own, like mbappe or neymar…no like ozil, mkitaryan or iwobi.
    I would not sell iwobi btw, because he can improve and is not expensive

  14. Why are we always on at ozil, he’s class that’s what matters and out of anyone I would want him supplying lacca and Auba. For me lacca is our best striker as he links the play and scores goals
    Our problem is we have too many average players
    Iwobi
    Jenks
    Elneny
    Miki

    And one of the worst ever signings and def the worst for 35m Mustafi

    Replace those 5 with top 6 PL quality and as a squad we will shine

    I’m not happy that emery is prioritising the cup as top 3 is so close

    1. When has Emery stated he is prioritizing the Europa League. The number of people on here who can read Emery’s mind re selections, tactics and priorities is amazing.

    2. ” I would want him supplying lacca and Auba”…..and who’s stopping him to do it?Simple answer is ” he can’t”…

      1. Lmao. Thank you for saying this! Ozil doesn’t even do his job well. Auba is consistently as invisible as Ozil for half of the matches they play in. And I’m so tired of fans blaming the players around Ozil for why Ozil isn’t good. He has two strikers that score tons of goals and he still only has TWO assists. That is horrible for a supposedly world class player. Let’s ask ourselves a question. Would Chelsea/United/Spurs/City/Liverpool want Ozil in their team? I can’t think of a single one of them who would. I have never heard any of their fans saying anything about desperately wanting Ozil on their squad. Unlike us (excluding United who are competing with us for incompetence)

        1. Ozil isn’t playing as well as he should, I agree with you on that. However let me just add this for thought and intellectual honesty.

          Did you watch CP game? Did you notice how many times Ozil had to drop back in midfield because Elneny and Guendouzi could not link up with attackers?

          Or how about having no wingers out wide to spread defenders rather than clog midfield, leaving no outlets except 2 ST trying to position themselves to score?

          Ozil could do more sure; he could dribble out of danger like Santi used to, he could draw defenders to him to create space rather than go down so easy.

          Just saying without quality wingers creating threats, and relying on wingbacks to drive forward makes his job harder aye?

          Lastly, he’s only creative player on pitch, other team knows it and mark him out, and Ozil has 7 defenders as teammates. FFS, let’s give it some context please.

          We gave up 3 goals, but let’s blame Ozil again. Emery had disastrous setup, but let’s blame Ozil. Mustafi gave away 2 goals, but lets talk about what Ozil didn’t do.

          Hard to be influential surrounded by 7 defenders, have to bail out Elneny and Guendouzi all game, and manager excuses Mustafi, but holds Ozil to different standard.

          1. Am I blaming Ozil for CP match? This is just a strawman argument. I am not even taking into account Ozil’s defensive contribution to the team. I really couldn’t care about that. He doesn’t deliver consistently when it even comes to being a CAM though.

            1. RSH I agree with you that Ozil doesn’t contribute consistently enough. He’s a good player, top top wages, and years of experience, and has not performed at the level we need.

              All I’m saying is consider the context. How many games is he surrounded by 7 defenders? Set up to defend, yet still leak goals; CP game another example.

              As for “World Class” I’d say we have 0 in entire squad. Sanchez was last player that could carry us and could deliver 90% of the time.

              I don’t expect any incoming either. Kronke allergic to spending that kind of money, and Emery doesn’t like big big players, personalities, egos, etc. Hence his friction stance with top players.

              1. RSH I have to agree with you every single bit. I don’t get why people havent realised that 45m on Ozil at the time has ultimately been a waste. Eriksen went for 12m. Was there for the taking!
                He was the best player in the CP game. Yes! But would he give us a consistently good performance to the end of the season?? Lets see, but I’d better have Ramsey in my squad.

  15. During his last season with Arsenal Sanchez was rubbish.He is a busted flush who has done nothing at Man Utd and their fans would like to see the back of him.Turning to Ozil he is a very talented ballplayer who is playing in a team which is defensively mediocre at best.Because of the poor quality players Emery has been obliged to select due to injuries etc is it little wonder we are !likely to fall short on both fronts this season.Ozil is still capable of producing game changing skills.The fact that he cannot do it on a regular basis is because of our lack of ability to defend and to get him on the ball in the final third of the pitch..Eddie is perfectly correct when he suggests Messi would struggle to make an impression in an Arsenal shirt in the highly physical EPL.He would rarely get the ball.Our best player this season has been Lacazette who has to forage deep to get possession because we do not have natural wingers who can extend their direct opponents.The term “world class” is irrelevant in modern day football where the emphasis has changed from superstars to the creation of high tempo ,athletic teamwork where drills are carried out repetitively on the training ground.Work class is a phrase which is overused these days Only Messi and Ronaldo of their generation have been the best on the planet and can rival stars of the past such as Pele, Maradonna and Cruyfe.To that extent Ozil has never been world class but he is still the most talented footballer on our books.

    1. The funny thing is Alexis Sanchez at his worst was still creating chances for Arsenal if I’m not mistaken he created several last minute assists for Giroud with well timed crosses any time Arsenal were in search of a goal.On talent basis, none of our players comes close to him and had it not been for the career path Sanchez had chosen, had he come to Arsenal after the 2010 World Cup and had those numbers he had for us he’d easily have been regarded as good as Hazard and many other top wingers.Fact is Arsenal need a player of peak Sanchez’s calibre to take us to the next level.I replied to you because I wanted to put things into perspective regarding Sanchez’s time at Arsenal.If you state the bad then you must also stat the good.

      1. Sorry kev, but I disagree that Sanchez was creating chances even at his worst.
        All he was doing was creating havoc and ill feeling within the club, once his head was turned by the dollar sign.

        He made it perfectly clear he wanted to leave, played in a manner that was certain he would get his wish and most certainly wasn’t a team player in any sense of the word.
        He held the club in complete disregard, whereas Ozil acted in a professional manner,was offered a contract that both sides accepted and stayed at the club.

        Ironically, the overwhelming reaction when Sanchez left was that, if we were to be seen as “a big club”, we had to keep Ozil at any cost.
        That was simply because Ozil was the best player we had, he still is and UE and his team mates are all behind the views of that, then, overwhelming majority.
        When he signed his contract, the feeling of jubilation was complete and we consoled ourselves that we had managed to send out a message to all our rivals that we were a big club.
        At that time, not one word was offered in protest, if my memory serves me correctly. I’m sure I’ll be corrected as hindsight is a wonderful thing, especially when it can’t be collaborated.

  16. Well for starters world class players have to be consistent. Can we all agree on that? So ozil is automatically ruled out.

  17. I don’t know why no one is talking bout Mustafi horrendous mistake and ever-present and ineffective Guendouzi. It is quite easy to blame Ozil because he’s certainly the biggest name we’ve got.
    How many of you slate Aubameyang for all of his misses but instead, it is Ozil that stole your kidney and must be arrested

    1. No one player should be blamed for the loss. I had my doubts about Elneney and Mustafi when I saw the team sheet and I still think without these two we would have done better.

  18. I’m not giving any opinion on whether he’s world class or not, cos there are some yardsticks that he’ll meet and some he won’t

    But for us as a team, how many games have we lost cos of what Mesut Ozil did wrong or failed to do this season?

    Mustafi has made errors/caused last minute penalties in games in which we either lost or drew, Auba has missed sitters in games we list and drew, but which of Ozil’s mistakes have caused us?

  19. Do you want to tell me Aubamayeng is an average player??? Are Aguero, Salah or Kane not world class???
    This guy since coming to arsenal has been world class. He’s missed a lot yess!! but has scored as many as the best here have!! Next season I believe he’ll do much better with new players coming in!!
    And the blame also goes to Lacazette and Iwobi! Laca has missed some sitters too. Iwobi should have buried more for me.

  20. First, Ronaldo was not sold at RM will. Ronaldo wanted to leave for a new challenge especially after Zidane was leaving!!
    About Ozil I never said he wasnt world class when he came to us. He was world class and I believe if he goes to another league he could come back to that but lets be honest here, since Ozil came to arsenal he’s had only half a decent season!!
    Actually I don’t expect Ozil to defend a lot. Just show more zeal!!
    Fact is Ozil even when left to freely roam around and not do much defensivelyhe hasnt done enough

    1. RM did sell Ronaldo, simply because he wanted a new challenge, that I agree with.
      Ozil wanted to stay at The Arsenal because he stated that he wants a challenge, has unfinished business, loves the club and it’s fans, any difference?

      So, if you believe that Ozil could become a world class player again, why are you not questioning what our club and UE are failing to do to make this happen for us?
      If he has the potential, that you clearly see in him, why would we even think of selling him? Rather we should be building our team around this w/class potential in order to fulfill it!!
      That is PRECISELY what the Ozil fans want the club to do, not turn him into something he can never be or even sell him!!

      So if Ozil shows zeal and runs up and down the pitch like a fiddlers elbow and performs cartwheels in the penalty area ( a mustafi signature move) that would make him a better player? Just be content and watch that lazy looking magic ooze around his every move, setting up goals for lacs, aba, kolasinac etc etc while scoring some great goals himself of course.
      That’s why UE is selecting him and why his team mates love his contribution.

      We may only have two more years of seeing Ozil in our famous shirt, if that’s the case, I intend to savour every single minute of it.

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