Ozil’s best performance? by Dan Smith
People often use Ozil’s body language as a stick to beat him with. So, it’s only right we talk about his demeanour when it’s positive. He couldn’t hide his joy when he realised a free-flowing passing move was going to lead to a third goal. In a space of a few minutes we had produced the type of football which is his ethos, a style that he believes his how the game should be played.
Some cynics will say for the salary he’s on, he should be deciding these types of games and hasn’t done it often enough since extending his deal. I have always defended him, some fans taking it out on him that others were not doing their jobs properly. Too often the German has been in midfield’s that are too easily bullied, sometimes showing up not prepared to battle. However, we did not spend 49 million on him to be our enforcer, his role is to assist and in terms of that statistic he’s one of the best in Europe. I believe we underestimate what he brings to the side, but I can’t deny he hasn’t always had the right mentality when facing adversity. That’s what makes Monday Night perhaps his best performance in an Arsenal shirt. 1-0 down to Leicester and being outplayed, our captain took the game by the scruff of the neck to make sure we ended the half on a high.
It’s what his critics say ‘he doesn’t do enough’. Perhaps before behind at home to the Foxes, our playmaker would have left it to someone else to lead the fightback. It’s been a hard few months for Oil. He feels let down and not supported by his country, so he needs to feel the love from all gooners at the moment. On the 79th minute when he got subbed he got that love from gunners who perhaps had witnessed his best performance in the red and white.
Dan Smith