Tony Cascarino has claimed that Mesut Ozil was given more than enough to cause havoc yesterday, and the Arsenal man lead the charge against Chelsea.
The Gunners needed a last-minute equaliser to deny the Blues the win at the Emirates last night, and despite Ozil not being directly involved in the goals, Cascarino has claimed that Ozil was key in causing the Blues problems.
He believed that his previous experience leaves him feeling that Conte will have been livid that the German was permitted so much space and time to play his game.
Tony said: “When I moved up from the lower divisions to the top flight, I learnt quickly that good players should not be allowed time on the ball because they will destroy you.
“That certainly applies to Mesut Ozil, who was given more space by Chelsea last night than Antonio Conte, the away team’s manager, would have liked.
“The German has had his critics because he looks lazy as he strolls around the pitch, but he is very dangerous when he has time in possession.
“Tiemoue Bakayoko was in the position to mark him but was not really stopping him effectively.”
Ozil is currently under a cloud of uncertainty with his and his teammates Wilshere and Alexis Sanchez’s contracts currently up come the summer, but he certainly appears to be giving his all on the pitch in recent weeks.
It remains to be seen whether his upturn in commitment is due to the January transfer window or more simply that he is keen to prove his worth to Arsenal, but I believe his performance yesterday was amongst his best against the bigger sides in the division.
Should Chelsea have done better or was Ozil simply unplayable yesterday? Could we still persuade him to stay at the club?
Pat J