Finishing school: Jack Wilshere completes the scoring last night with his second goal
Ozil was far from anonymous against Marseille — there were several
flashes of class and an assist for Jack Wilshere’s second goal among his
contributions — but the fact he was outshone by several team-mates in a
crucial Champions League match underlines the evolution in Arsene
Wenger’s team.
Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey excelled in midfield; the former rediscovering his best after a spell under scrutiny and the latter continuing a remarkable improvement in his overall game in evidence throughout this season.
Ozil, by contrast, has been subdued in recent matches. A peripheral involvement in the first half gave way to a more influential showing after the interval but that assist for Wilshere was only his second in 10 appearances for Arsenal and Germany.
The 25-year-old has also not scored since netting a brace against Norwich on October 19; any player can miss a penalty — even a German — yet there was a lack of conviction about his spot-kick that suggested he is not quite operating at his peak.
Such an assessment may appear harsh but the standards expected are inevitably higher on a £42.4million signing and particularly one who made such an impressive start in England.
Of course, Arsenal have no need to be unduly worried about any dip at this stage. They continue to succeed at home and abroad and the club’s easing injury situation affords Wenger the chance to rotate should he see fit.
It has been noted in these pages before how Ozil was carefully managed at Real Madrid; of the 40 games he started last season, he completed only 19 of them. The year before, he finished just 14 of 44 starts.
For Arsenal, he has now started 14 games and played the entirety of 10. Ozil’s fitness will require close monitoring, especially given he is still adjusting to the rigours of English football, but the good news for Wenger is that he has plenty of midfielders to call on to supplement or replace Ozil should he need a rest.
Ramsey’s form has been well documented but Wilshere’s place has been questioned amid concerns over his fitness. The 21-year-old was deployed on the right last night, although he regularly rotated with Ozil and Tomas Rosicky, allowing him to find pockets of space in which to create and score.
It was one of his most effective performances of the season, moving with style and purpose, regularly pressing Marseille high up the pitch to win the ball back on the occasions when a pass failed to find its mark.
“He played as a young boy on the flank, on the right side,” said Wenger. “If I would block him [make him stay] on the flank I understand he cannot play there but he is quite free to move inside. He does that in an intelligent way.
“Sometimes you can find freedom in positions where usually you would be marked if you played more central. We have a big programme — I will have to rotate a little bit until the Napoli game. We have three Premier League games just before we go to Naples, so I’ll have to use my squad well without dropping points in the League and go there with a very strong team.”
Ozil will, no doubt, have a key role to play but it bodes well for Wenger that he has so many midfield options. Mikel Arteta, Theo Walcott and Santi Cazorla all made second-half substitute appearances to underline the strength Arsenal have in that area of the pitch.
It is easy to sympathise with Wenger’s disbelief that 12 points has not even secured second place in Group F; assuming Borussia Dortmund beat Marseille, a point in Naples would give Arsenal top spot but a three-goal defeat would see them drop into the Europa League for the first time in 14 seasons.
“It’s unbelievable but it is reality,” said Wenger. “We have to finish the job. It is not easy — it is a tricky situation because you can think ‘okay, let’s just not lose big’ but that would be a mistake. [We need to] go there, play in a positive way and try to win. Everything else would be a dangerous gamble.”
http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/mesut-ozil-misfires-but-arsene-wenger-has-got-other-bright-sparks-8966668.html
Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey excelled in midfield; the former rediscovering his best after a spell under scrutiny and the latter continuing a remarkable improvement in his overall game in evidence throughout this season.
Ozil, by contrast, has been subdued in recent matches. A peripheral involvement in the first half gave way to a more influential showing after the interval but that assist for Wilshere was only his second in 10 appearances for Arsenal and Germany.
The 25-year-old has also not scored since netting a brace against Norwich on October 19; any player can miss a penalty — even a German — yet there was a lack of conviction about his spot-kick that suggested he is not quite operating at his peak.
Such an assessment may appear harsh but the standards expected are inevitably higher on a £42.4million signing and particularly one who made such an impressive start in England.
Of course, Arsenal have no need to be unduly worried about any dip at this stage. They continue to succeed at home and abroad and the club’s easing injury situation affords Wenger the chance to rotate should he see fit.
It has been noted in these pages before how Ozil was carefully managed at Real Madrid; of the 40 games he started last season, he completed only 19 of them. The year before, he finished just 14 of 44 starts.
For Arsenal, he has now started 14 games and played the entirety of 10. Ozil’s fitness will require close monitoring, especially given he is still adjusting to the rigours of English football, but the good news for Wenger is that he has plenty of midfielders to call on to supplement or replace Ozil should he need a rest.
Ramsey’s form has been well documented but Wilshere’s place has been questioned amid concerns over his fitness. The 21-year-old was deployed on the right last night, although he regularly rotated with Ozil and Tomas Rosicky, allowing him to find pockets of space in which to create and score.
It was one of his most effective performances of the season, moving with style and purpose, regularly pressing Marseille high up the pitch to win the ball back on the occasions when a pass failed to find its mark.
“He played as a young boy on the flank, on the right side,” said Wenger. “If I would block him [make him stay] on the flank I understand he cannot play there but he is quite free to move inside. He does that in an intelligent way.
“Sometimes you can find freedom in positions where usually you would be marked if you played more central. We have a big programme — I will have to rotate a little bit until the Napoli game. We have three Premier League games just before we go to Naples, so I’ll have to use my squad well without dropping points in the League and go there with a very strong team.”
Ozil will, no doubt, have a key role to play but it bodes well for Wenger that he has so many midfield options. Mikel Arteta, Theo Walcott and Santi Cazorla all made second-half substitute appearances to underline the strength Arsenal have in that area of the pitch.
It is easy to sympathise with Wenger’s disbelief that 12 points has not even secured second place in Group F; assuming Borussia Dortmund beat Marseille, a point in Naples would give Arsenal top spot but a three-goal defeat would see them drop into the Europa League for the first time in 14 seasons.
“It’s unbelievable but it is reality,” said Wenger. “We have to finish the job. It is not easy — it is a tricky situation because you can think ‘okay, let’s just not lose big’ but that would be a mistake. [We need to] go there, play in a positive way and try to win. Everything else would be a dangerous gamble.”
http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/mesut-ozil-misfires-but-arsene-wenger-has-got-other-bright-sparks-8966668.html
No comments:
Post a Comment