The Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil is famous the world over as the assist king of the Premier League, and has always worked just behind the striker(s), but today Unai Emery has made it clear that he intends to use the German as a right-winger as well as his usual position in the centre.
“I like the possibility to have the player play different positions on the pitch and then it depends each match for us and for the opposition,” Emery said. “For that, Mesut played with me on the right wing and also as No.10, and we are going to continue to do that.
“Mesut in his career, he played as a ten and on the right — when he was playing at Real Madrid, I remember a lot of matches on the right.
“His quality is for playing between the lines. But I spoke with him for his best position on the pitch and I know he can play right and as a ten. And he wants that I can use him for two positions.
“Every player in the squad plays in the position we need. Our demands are very high, very great, but I want to ask every player every day to give us more — not just Mesut, the team, the squad. We need to push, we need to have ambition, we need to have desire to improve every day.
“This is my message for the team, for the squad and for every player.”
The Spanish coach is obviously stamping his authority on his team and making sure they know who is boss, but it has often been said that Ozil is wasted on the wing when all his success has come as a Number Ten.
Is Emery changing Ozil to a winger just a tinker to much?
Darren N