Arsene Wenger has told new Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta how to get the best out of Mesut Ozil, telling him he needs to find the right balance between attack and defence.
The Frenchman was in charge when the club made the German Arsenal’s record signing, and oversaw an amazing partnership form between him and Alexis Sanchez, but Ozil has been frozen out of late.
Unai Emery first struggled to get the best out of the 31 year-old, which saw him become a rotational figure of the squad, while Arteta did initially return him to a key role prior to lockdown.
Ozil is yet to play since football returned to action in May however, and was recently left out of the squad for the Europa League, which could well mean he has played his last game for the club.
Arsene Wenger believes there could well be room for him to play however, but only if Arteta can balance his lack of discipline with more defensive-minded players.
“He wasn’t exactly the one with the greatest discipline on the pitch. And playing the game without the ball wasn’t exactly his forte,” Wenger told Spiegel Sports.
“But you can deal with that if you put some more defensively minded players by his side. The main thing is to get the balance between attack and defence right.”
The Frenchman did not try to highlight Ozil’s importance in today’s game however, more claiming that the game has moved away from his style of play.
“Players have lost their technical quality over the past 10 years,” Wenger argued. “Athleticism has become more important than technique and decision making. It’s more about physical characteristics and intensity, about explosiveness. And it’s also about being a showman.”
As much as the team has lacked some creativity, the results are more important, and the team ethic is profiting from not having him in the team. Unless any of this changes, I struggle to see a need for Mesut to be given another chance…
Does anyone think Ozil still has a chance to feature?
Patrick
