® Wikimedia
The current slandering and defamation of Mesut Ozil is nothing short of disgraceful. Nobody at Arsenal comes anywhere close to his achievements; world cup winner, five times German player of the year and winner of a La Liga title. All Ozil has done since he came to Arsenal in 2013-14 was to help us win three FA cups after 10 trophyless years, bringing further luster and fame to Arsenal football club as the single greatest winner of the oldest and most revered cup competition in world football.
Yet Unai Emery doesn’t rate him. After 8 matches in the EPL, he was selected once and hauled off before the 70 minute marker after a dreadful team performance against Watford when our club was outshot 31 v 7 times. Most people have quickly forgotten that the offensive onslaught by one of the worst clubs in the league coincided with the last 23 minutes of the games when Ozil was left cooling his heels on the bench. Arsenal was unable to retain possession and Watford ran riot eventually scoring the equalizer.
Talent vs graft
After such disastrously poor performances as Watford away and Aston Villa at home Martin Keown has the unmitigated gall to go on talk radio and spew the following nonsense:
“I think it’s disappointing that someone with that amount of talent can’t find his way into an Arsenal team
“And again, that’s about balance. That’s about a player wanting to graft and show the other side of his game. Until he does that, he won’t be in this new Arsenal team.”
What type of “hard graft” does Martin Keown think is preferable for Arsenal football club. Maybe it is that of Guendouzi who, evidently, is Emery’s favorite midfielder, having been a starter in every PL match this season. Last year, as a rookie, a young transferee from Ligue 2 in France, he was selected 33 times. His premier league record so far is 41 Appearances, 0 Goals and 1 Assist. In comparison, Mesut Ozil was selected 24 times, 5 Goals and 2 Assists. Despite limited appearances Ozil made an average of 1.9 key passes per game last year compared to 0.9 for Guendouzi.
Apparently what matters for Emery is that Guendouzi is a superior defensive player making more tackles, interceptions, blocks and clearances.
It makes a lot of sense to select Guendouzi ahead of Ozil if the team is set up passively, afraid to take the game to the opposition as evident by the data. Arsenal is the 3rd worst team in the League in taking touches in its own third at 32%. Only two clubs are worse; Norwich and Villa at 37 and 35 percent respectively, both of whom are newly promoted and justifiably cautious in their approach.
Conversely this Emery coached team is either afraid or unable to take the game to its opponents in their third of the field. Arsenal only touches the ball 28% of the time in the final third compared to Man City who are a whole 10 percentage points better and Liverpool at 33%. There is no need for an Ozil in such an Arsenal team; only grafters are welcome, as Martin Keown advocates.
Playing like a Little Club
For a team, which since Emery arrived, has spent close to £200 million on transfers the quality of football being played by Arsenal is pathetic. Not only are we playing like a little club but like a newly promoted little club. Are we any different from Norwich? They would be skint if they lost Pukki who has scored six of their 10 goals except. Arguably Arsenal is in a similar position with Aubameyang who has scored seven of our 13 goals. The only difference between both clubs is we have a deeper bench of quality players.
Yet we have pundits,bloggers and tweeters blaming Ozil for this pathetic state of affairs, not the manager who sets up the team to sit back after going 1-0 up against Bournemouth and be subject to an offensive onslaught. Excluded from the squad, was it Ozil who couldn’t cope with their “physicality and intensity” of the Cherries? Emery can only get away with this nonsense because of people like Martin Keown.
Additional Reading
Ozil’s EPL record at Arsenal speaks for itself:
Appearances – 167
Goals – 32
Wins – 95
Losses – 35
Team Play
Assists – 52
Passes – 10,394
Passes per match – 62.24
Big chances created – 64
Crosses – 763
Cross accuracy % – 35%
Through balls – 119
Accurate long balls – 258
Attack
Goals – 32
Goals per match – 0.19
Headed goals – 4
Goals with right foot – 4
Goals with left foot – 24
Penalties scored – 0
Freekicks scored – 1
Shots – 196
Shots on target – 89
Shooting accuracy % – 45%
Hit woodwork – 7
Big chances missed – 25
Defence
Tackles – 144
Tackle success % – 71%
Blocked shots – 54
Interceptions – 70
Clearances – 36
Headed Clearance – 13
Recoveries – 710
Duels won – 577
Duels lost – 681
Successful 50/50s – 235
Aerial battles won – 27
Aerial battles lost – 79
Errors leading to goal – 2
Discipline
Yellow cards – 12
Red cards – 0
Fouls – 81
Spot on Shotts. covered it all. A brilliant piece.
Damn shame you even have to write this though. Ö should be one of the main focal points of the team at the moment, especially with the likes of Auba and Lacca and Pep up front.
Sadly I think he will be gone before Emery, and will have a bitter memories with Arsenal. I dont want that. Why does everyone have to be some clone from the 70s to be accepted by the fake hard nuts? In my years I saw three truly skilful guys that blew my mind, Brady, Hlelb and the Ö. There were players with other skills that are bigger favs, that are bigger legends or whatever crap its called these days, but to watch the flowing intelligence of those guys was a gift from beyond.
I personally dont care if Guen gets back more than Ö, the kid is not even in the same ball park when it comes to the midfield and attack. Dumb agenda world. Backwards Arsenal.
Thanks again mate, but sad that you had to write this.
CÖYG!
Good work again Shotta
What is it about Ozil that evokes such irrational..hate almost.. (In some cases remove the almost)
He’s not the guy who takes a crap team to the top. He’s just the guy who makes a good team great, by elevating everyone around him. He did what Cesc could not. What RVP could not. He ended our trophy drought. Santi played his best games when Ozil was there to take the creative burden and occupy space. Giroud benefited. Walcott benefited.
So why? Is it because he’s German of Turkish origin? Muslim? Not a bulldog but an artist? Is it his fee? His wages? His loyalty?
Aah. I think that’s it. He was loyal to Wenger and Arsenal, and he made sure people knew it when they tried to piss on that. He belied the narrative that no top player wants to be at Arsenal or play for Wenger. So after manufacturing stories about him leaving didn’t work, they decided to say he’s not a top player or lacks ambition. Because all the disloyal cunts who left us in the lurch ought to be valued more than the ones who stayed. It’s a pathetic small time mentality.
Exactly the mentality embraced by our idiot fans, our idiot coach, and our overlord and agent provacateur Raul Sanllehi. Tell Arsenal fans everything is shit, so that he can promote himself as the saviour. When things go wrong, well it was already bad. Or blame Emery. And then the next guy, and/or Edu.
Ozil is a pawn in a bigger game of the destruction of Arsenal and what it stands (stood?) for. Many of our uber loyal fans are unwitting participants in this. Many of our uber ‘centrist’ fans are willing participants in this.
Hi Shard. As you observe the slander and defamation of Ozil is irrational. Up to recently he was the hero, the man who not only improved every one around him but helped us win 3 trophies. The thrust of my article is to expose the mindless, fact-free arguments used by Emery and his apologists in the media to justify his marginalization and non-selection. Martin Keown is an Arsenal-man who is representative of those centrists who refuse to stand up and object to this nonsense. They will only squeal when results start going against us by which time it may well be too late as Ozil would be already out of the club at the rate things are going.
I am fully aware that Emery has to have the full backing of Raul to undertake such a campaign against our best and highest paid player. They all feel secure because we are 3rd in the League. Until then they will escape the heat.
Significantly Shard my friend Ozil has an agent who is too powerful, well known in the game, and smart to kowtow to Daddy Raul and his gang. What’s happening now is predictable after the good doctor’s early castration of their efforts in the Summer. He saw this unpredictable heh riposte coming some time ago, so I don’t think this story is over just yet.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/49920769
Monaco have spent £360M on new players since gutting their squad that we saw in North London a few years ago.
Sir (for services rendered) Ed Teflon Woodward of the infamous yet perfectly welcome to his bosses “Cock Ups” once spent £70M in three LBs in one transfer window back when £70M was still big Wonga.
This is why the Benfica/Monaco model beloved of the likes of Daddy Raul is terrifying for any club. That the fan base are not being allowed in the media to discuss Sven’s comment on perfectly legitimate and different models existing within the wider sport tells us all how extreme and narrow the coverage on these topics are.
What’s happening at he club the past 14 months reflects the period where GG flogged off his own best footballers in order to line his own pocket.
He was sacked by Fizman for doing so whilst his peers who did exactly the same were rewarded with the England Job.
Quantifiably what’s happening now is a lot worse then what happened in the mid-nineties and the odds on another AW popping along to salvage the club and repair the damage is even more unlikely then it was back then.
So at this current time Billy Big Blagger is voiciferously supporting Agents (what kind of agents?) who are acting ruinously towards Arsenal Football Club.
Even the groundsman buggered off to get a better treatment/deals elsewhere and that’s not normal for The Arsenal IMO but hey who needs values in this world?
Was the Ozil “cup of tea” meme aimed at some idiotic hack/PR consultant, or at the person writing their brief?
Who was the Bergkamp quote directed towards?
What about today’s quote praising the old coach?
Yep. Whatever happens next,
Ozil’s Dr saw this one coming sometime ago.
Fiszman, or someone at the club, also sacked Keith Edelman. Oh sorry, he resigned. Always wondered what that was about.
Yeah, contrary to smuggerblog who really likes Raul, I like Ozil’s agent. I actually also liked Ramsey’s agent. They genuinely seem to care about their client more than money. I predicted Ozil would re-up his contract and stay when a lot of folks were saying he’s out the door on a free and wouldn’t give up all the money that comes with it (or with signing early)
Why? Because Ozil’s brand is built on his sincerity. He was signalling he wanted to stay, and if you’d followed him even a bit, you’d know to believe his statements. Of course he wasn’t going to give Arsenal any charity and demanded his worth (less than it actually)
Note also that the club and Raul didn’t kick up a stink about Ozil’s contract until after the Adidas deal was negotiated and confirmed. Just as soon as it was done, Ozil was made expendable. That’s not only screwing over Ozil, but also a new sponsorship partner. Ozil’s jersey was also the highest selling, at least initially.
This is who Raul is turning us into. The name on the badge means little on its own without it standing for something.
That the club, despite Raul and the man whose hair he stole, Vinai, being there, couldn’t muster a few messages for Arsene Wenger’s achievements says a lot about what this club stands for now.
The fake agenda is that Arsenal are doing well in the league at the moment. Idiots try to use the exclusion of Özil as some set of indicator that this season’s Arsenal is different to last season’s.
Last season, fools claimed the 22 game unbeaten run was due to Emery’s amazing managerial prowess and good performances by the team. It was luck and clinical finishing by our strikers.
This season the same fools still believe we are performing well. I will stick my neck out and say we will have no significant sequence of wins between now and Christmas. We will draw and loose many games that our players should win comfortably.
Based of the chances we afford the opposition, many are going to be scored against us. Based of the limited chances we create, we won’t score many.
We results go south, it will be clear that Ceballos is not the answer. Neither is Willock or Douzi. At this point Özil support will become en vogue.
Özil will outlast Emery at Arsenal
Wish I shared your optimism about the brevity of Emery’s tenure. Last year nobody was alarmed about the poor football we were playing until around February when we started losing games. Then and only then he started selecting Ramsey or Ozil but rarely playing the two together as is his cowardly nature. I suspect he will be happy when Ozil is no longer an option so he won’t be forced to pick him.
a lot of the hate towards Ozil has stemmed from media sniping at him since he got his lat big pay contract. The idea was put out there that the only reason Arsenal were not buying players, especially last January, was cos Ozil’s wages was stopping it. A crazy notion, fully accepted by bat shit crazy cunts with little or no understanding of finances. Ozil a German of Turkish origin, and a Muslim to boot, who riled a couple of journos, the tea drinking meme was never forgiven. That Ozil also called out the bloggers and attention seekers in our fan base left him an easy target.
Seeing as Martin Keown was mentioned, I would like to say that I really do laugh when I see his punditary work, last weekend end he went on and on about Traore of Wolves, about how he was not top class, a star, had finally made it or finally fulfilled his potential, and what had caused this conclusion, thats right he scored 2 goals in a game, his first goals of the season, and his 3rd BPL goals in his 73rd BPL game, Martin Keown likes his flavor of the month players. Or should I say flavour of the week. what I really like from Keown is when he goes on and on about some mistake or other that a defender has made, as if he never made a mistake, or cost his team a goal, or a game, (dare I mention his 2 own goals v Bolton that ended our title challenge one season), should I remind people that he actually spent much of his peak years playing as a man marker in midfield as he could not dislodge Bould and Adams, not forgetting Andy Linighan getting in at CB ahead of him too
Keown was one of my favourite players. Something about his attitude I guess. It was fiery but understated, except when it deservedly came out against Van Nistelrooy.
But like with Theirry Henry, he has been a disappointment in his later career. I think he took the fact that he was never offered a permanent position at the club to heart. Tony Adams did too, but he’s unsophisticated enough about it, as well as in his love for the club.
Models for me are Freddie and Pires. Always supportive of the club without being sycophants. I wish Bergkamp and Vieira spoke more. In fact, I hope they join the club. I have forgiven Vieira for choosing to be a part of ManCIty’s setup.
Well put by Shotta and Ghost of Wenger .
Shotta@810
I think you were not the only one to point out last year about Arsenals poor display on the field. Many of us at PA were of the same view.
Yep. My friend Blackburn George was the most vocal on our podcast.
Brilliant piece, once again on a topic that no one in mainstream media thinks warrant a debate.
Ozil is one of the best play makers in the world and the best at Arsenal! He is a symbol of philosophy for any manager to build his team around. People say that he doesn’t put defensive input while forgetting that even one of the best defensive manager in Jose Mourinho who values the static structure and the defensive shape of his team so highly, build his best Real Madrid team around Mesut Ozil. You take Ozil from that team and the whole counter attacking oriented build up of Real Madrid falls apart. He was the man behind the success of Ronaldo in the season they score over 100 goals. So, to say that he doesn’t put enough shift in doesn’t highlight his own shortcoming but rather his manager’s inability to find a system that gets the best out of the best play maker at his disposal. Hence, the system is the failure and not the man.
Under Arsene, Ozil thrived whenever he was on the pitch. As someone once said, he is not a guy to carry a trash on his back but rather the guy to make a good team into a great team. Arsene knew that and that’s why he was so keen to always pair Cazorla behind Ozil at every cost because he knew you need someone to find Ozil in that tight little pocket of space which he so intelligently finds throughout the game to make him not only effective but a killer. And this is also the reason that when opponents were able to dominate our midfield they were also able to take Ozil out of the game because if Ozil is forced to drop deep to get the ball, the whole system’s basis just falls. That is why when Cazorla got injured, Arsenal suffered.
Right now, we have gone from the Arsenal way to the Stoke City way in a season. We play like a mid table club, think like a mid table club, signs mid table players or rejects of once great and good, our emphasis is to marginalize the greatness of our opposition while keep telling yourself that you are awful and the if the opponent gets in mood you are fucked.
Unai Emery is a appointment gone wrong. He is in every sense Anti-Arsenal and that won’t change. Ozil is the last reflection of the Arsenal way at Arsenal and if we get rid of him than I really wonder to what future we are going? What was the purpose of Emirates Stadium if you are to go in it and play like a mid table?
I think the bigger issue here is the board and the fans who are backing that board. They don’t give a fuck about our values. As for ex-Arsenal players, I learned long ago that their voice is as good as garbage.
Shotta,
Thanks for this blog and your articles going back over the past period here and on PA.
The only two blogs where Arsenal fans were allowed to ask why some Fraud was starting Guendouzi over Ramsey last season and over Ozil this season.
The fraud Blaggers praying on the gullible Arsenal fans tried out the meme that “Ramsey and Ozil couldn’t play together” in an effort to support their man Raul as we all know they “really like Raul”. Really. They do! More then the Football…
This season they are now saying as an appendix to their credibility destroying gibberish over the last twelve months that Arsenal fans are showing “anxiety”.
No mate, it’s not anxiety when football fans can spot a coach who can’t coach a midfield. Or much else.
lol “anxiety”. Calling out someone who can’t do their job is not an expression of anxiety! Quite th opposite in fact.
To describe such clear thinking from so many people as a muddled emotion is the conduct and expression of a not so cunning linguist. Lordamighty what a shower this crowd are who are feasting upon the flesh of Arsenal Football Club.
“The emperor has no clothes.” Somebody has to say it.
But they spent £200M on his wardrobe!!!
I suppose such expense for “shit without a stick” would make anyone feel “anxiety”.
LOL?
Indeed. The metaphor is apt.
I agree with you.
Yet, I wonder if we are in a minority.
The attitude towards Ozil by many fans seems to be fuelled by his alleged salary.
As no one really knows outside the club what t really is and how many strings there are attached to it, it is pure speculation.
Perhaps a large chunk of it is dependant on his actually playing, hence the fact that he is is “not deserving”.
I think it may be the younger fans who only remember the good times that are prepared to jump on the bandwagon or salary/lazy, maybe because they simply cannot see in which direction we are going, towards the sort of Arsenal that we knew and loved but did no really like.
I agree that just as the 22 match unbeaten run last season was a mirage,so is the fact that we have stumbled up to 3rd, not so much by merit, but by default.
It is a very sorry situation which is polarising the fans in an unpleasant way,
Until it comes to a head this general dissatisfaction will continue and mayhbe get worse
Shard & Shotta
It’s only taken the Billy Big Blaggers 10 months to catch up with your objective recordings of Love (for Football) in the Time of Emery (& Daddy Raul):
That in football terminology Emery is a coward. Plain and simple.
We all saw it in his second game (notably against Chelsea who finished off what was left of his reputation as a decent coach at the end of the season) when he had a panic attack despite being in the ascendancy of that match at HT.
Who would want to follow a general who has panic attacks everytime the opponent attacks?
Better late then never.
But I am not Emery Out given that Vampire Raul is our own Ed Woodward leeching upon the flesh of this great football club, just as he did at Barcelona, the nasty little fraud that he is.
Interesting to hear one of the mainstream Blaggers who work with the big broadcasters calling him out like that albeit indirectly.
As one Utd fan said about their coach: “Ole might be in over his head but if someone offered me a bumbling amateur the job I’d have said yes!”
The only hope is that Raul is not the one picking the next coach again. His comments on ozil indirectly and inadvertently admit what we all know very well: that Unai was and is Raul’s gimp.
Shard no one has imagined and speculated more accurately how Unai was selected. Thanks for highlighting that bogus selection process for everyone else in good time, we know what the problem is and it won’t go away until Raul is gone – same as it was for Barcelona!
Am afraid the inevitable slide in the footballing quality and stature of our club will continue drip by drip until it shows up in the results. In the meantime let us hope Don Raul and Emery do not succeed in doing irreparable damage to this great institution.
It seems that the UE attitude about Ozil that he does not deserve his place even in the cup team is now express club policy as confirmed at the recent meeting.
A case of cutting off one’s nose to spite one’s face.
A lot of the fan’s ire against Ozil is based on the allegation that he is earning £350k a week whether he plays or does not.
The figure and this allegation is based on no facts, rather like the “fact” that we only had £40m to spend in the last window, which has been shown to be false.
That the club does nothing to dispel that is another indication that they would rather the fans believe it so that they should not react against what is being done.
It is shameful and an embarrassment to all genune fans.
Our beloved club is being turned into a creature of spite and lies, for what end, only the powers that be really know.
No doubt things will change if the current mirage of being 3rd and deserving to be 3rd is shown to be that.
Can I make a request here please.
A frequent a number of blogs, those whose views and attitude I prefer.
One of those is 7amkickoff.
After coming here and one or two other places, I tried to go there and it seems I now need a password to go there.
However, it does not say how I go about getting one.
Does anyone know what I should be doing please?
Sorry I can’t help JJ. Apart from being a regular at PosArse I only visit those other blogs occasionally
[…] head coach. It is self evident and really no need for me to go over ground covered in a previous blog. Despite being the most decorated member of the squad, despite his medals, despite being the […]