You could say that about any player with a bit of skill.
Ozil
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How dare he negotiate his wages? The club could have passed on it. Like we could have on Sanchez. We didn't have to pay him all that money. Castigating a player based on how much he earns is silly.
Nothing wrong with saying he has been poor, but the criticism he receives is disproportionate, as if he's the worst player on the pitch. And it's been a pattern with him ever since he's come to Arsenal.
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He did choose his wages.
It’s shocking how people expect a player who came on a world class transfer fee with a world class reputation and world class wages to put in decent performances. No reason to demand anything world class from him.
Why doesn’t Carl Jenkinson get the same level of criticism one might wonder.
In the last 3 seasons Ozil has directly scored or contributed to 19, 26 and 28 goals. This thread is way longer than this season so forgive me for not buying what you're saying.
The BBC had this table on an Eden Hazard article the other day:
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(Goalscoring chances created in PL since start 2012-13)
Hazard - 245 apps - 595 chances
Silva - 211 apps - 566 chances
Eriksen - 206 apps - 547 chances
Ozil - 166 apps - 521 chances
Mata - 209 apps - 389 chances
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What stuck out to me was comparing Ozil and Mata. He's had his fair share of criticism, Mata, but nothing even remotely close to that which seems to be fired at Ozil. In fact I would say that the majority of fans would speak with a lot of respect for him, his ability and his attitude. Yet look at those figures.. One player suffering similar criticism to Ozil is Pogba. I believe in each case it's because their passion, effort on the pitch and respect for the club are perceived to be lacking, and neither player has proven consistent enough to make up for those shortcomings despite being demonstrably superior to other players.
It's immensely frustrating because in my opinion the problem is so easy to avoid and is the responsibility of the player. Work hard on the pitch and be respectful (even if just in public) to the club and the fans will likely cut you a lot of slack, the media will call you a model professional, etc. Fail to do that and you're instead under pressure to perform at a really high level consistently, or else you become an easy target when results go awry.
Others will argue that it isn't logical to frantically chase back 50 yards or run around like a maniac, the likes of Pogba and Ozil are smarter than that. I'd even agree the majority of the time. But I think those arguments miss the point in that rarely or never doing these things is equally illogical, as they are what fans in this country demand to see, no matter the player or club. High workrate and passion is the minimum expectation. Rightly or wrongly, it remains a fundamental in English football culture and to show no appreciation for that fact is plain stupidity/negligence on the player's part imo.
----
(Goalscoring chances created in PL since start 2012-13)
Hazard - 245 apps - 595 chances
Silva - 211 apps - 566 chances
Eriksen - 206 apps - 547 chances
Ozil - 166 apps - 521 chances
Mata - 209 apps - 389 chances
---
What stuck out to me was comparing Ozil and Mata. He's had his fair share of criticism, Mata, but nothing even remotely close to that which seems to be fired at Ozil. In fact I would say that the majority of fans would speak with a lot of respect for him, his ability and his attitude. Yet look at those figures.. One player suffering similar criticism to Ozil is Pogba. I believe in each case it's because their passion, effort on the pitch and respect for the club are perceived to be lacking, and neither player has proven consistent enough to make up for those shortcomings despite being demonstrably superior to other players.
It's immensely frustrating because in my opinion the problem is so easy to avoid and is the responsibility of the player. Work hard on the pitch and be respectful (even if just in public) to the club and the fans will likely cut you a lot of slack, the media will call you a model professional, etc. Fail to do that and you're instead under pressure to perform at a really high level consistently, or else you become an easy target when results go awry.
Others will argue that it isn't logical to frantically chase back 50 yards or run around like a maniac, the likes of Pogba and Ozil are smarter than that. I'd even agree the majority of the time. But I think those arguments miss the point in that rarely or never doing these things is equally illogical, as they are what fans in this country demand to see, no matter the player or club. High workrate and passion is the minimum expectation. Rightly or wrongly, it remains a fundamental in English football culture and to show no appreciation for that fact is plain stupidity/negligence on the player's part imo.
But he's responsible for that wage. You made a point saying he didn't deserve criticism because he didn't ask for the transfer fee but he did ask for 350k a week, that is the number he came up with
You cant absolve him of the latter if you consider the former to be true.
Not even just an issue in English football these days. Not much of a place in top level midfield battles for luxury players, or those who require highly specific roles to get the best out of them.
That is not what he promised. He had his best years until he was 23.
Season - Club - league - minutes - goals - assists - minutes per goal/assist
2018/2019 Arsenal EPL - 1742 - 5 - 2 - 248,9
2017/2018 Arsenal EPL - 2164 - 4 - 8 - 180,3
2016/2017 Arsenal EPL - 2848 - 8 - 9 - 167,5
2015/2016 Arsenal EPL - 3049 - 6 - 19 - 122,0
2014/2015 Arsenal EPL - 1860 - 4 - 5 - 206,7
2013/2014 Arsenal EPL - 2150 - 5 - 9 - 153,6
2013/2014 Real Madrid SLL - 134 - 0 - 0 - 0,0
2012/2013 Real Madrid SLL - 2042 - 9 - 13 - 92,8
2011/2012 Real Madrid SLL - 2591 - 4 - 17 - 123,4
2010/2011 Real Madrid SLL - 2571 - 6 - 17 - 111,8
2009/2010 Werder Bremen GB - 2601 - 9 - 13 - 118,2
He has clearly regressed, no denying that, but he's the least of Arsenal's problems. Still among the best final third passers currently around. It's not just the assists but also his progressive passing that opens up space and initiates attacks. These kind of things are overlooked so often.
I understand that he's incredibly frustrating since he's arguably among the most gifted players of his generation and has underutilized his potential heavily. But the criticism is over the top since even that version of Özil is better than all other Arsenal players..
I understand that he's incredibly frustrating since he's arguably among the most gifted players of his generation and has underutilized his potential heavily. But the criticism is over the top since even that version of Özil is better than all other Arsenal players..
Looks like a cast member of the Walking Dead on the pitch.
Have you proven he's regressed there, or have you proven that he was playing with better players who were more likely to take their chances at Madrid?
Yeah right, contrarian
He's been probably their worst player this season, while being the highest paid, on a team that appears to be tight financially. Definitely not "the least of their problems"
Perhaps he declined physically ? He's been playing alot of football since a very young age.
I don't see a big technical decline, but he appears slower than when he was in his twenties.
I don't see a big technical decline, but he appears slower than when he was in his twenties.
He's definitely not as quick as he used to be in his days at Madrid.
I think the loss of pace/acceleration for even players like Ozil is underrated. If you're a fraction slower, everything becomes a bit harder - you're not in the right position to make the same pass you would've done in the past, people close you down quicker, you're slower to find space etc. Even Gerrard's shooting deserted him when he lost his speed, because he just couldn't get onto the ball as quickly as he could in the past.
It is the same with the numbers for Germany. He somehow lost his timing and directness. He used to be one of the guys with the least passes for a keypass and then for the assist. I do not think it is about pace or acceleration - but about speed of thought or getting the right moment for this surprising pass that catches the opposition unprepared.
Yeah, Gerrard used to score alot of goals from outside the box but in his last season at Liverpool I can barely remember it happening.
If Ozil is suffering with a loss of speed, people will wrongly view all of his performances as lazy and sometimes it can be the case but perhaps they haven't thought about this
I feel like he’ll end up in Turkey
Around Christmas, I reckon.
Loss of pace and acceleration is not much of an issue for a technical player like Ozil. He's never been particularly reliant on those, and for him it should be fairly easy to compensate.
I don't know if the reason why he's gotten worse is due to a physical decline(in his case it would slower reaction times and lower stamina that would affect him the most), but it looks more of a mental thing to me. He just doesn't seem particularly fussed about football anymore.
(As for his stats at arsenal being worse than at real madrid, that's down to the inferior quality of those arsenal teams)
I don't know if the reason why he's gotten worse is due to a physical decline(in his case it would slower reaction times and lower stamina that would affect him the most), but it looks more of a mental thing to me. He just doesn't seem particularly fussed about football anymore.
(As for his stats at arsenal being worse than at real madrid, that's down to the inferior quality of those arsenal teams)
I don't think he really enjoys football as much anymore. I'm getting the work vibe with him, as if he sees it as purely work now.
Madrid was more of a counterattacking team, blitzing teams with Ozil, Di Maria, Ronaldo etc on the break with great speed
Arsenal are a team that try to keep the ball. Plus of course its easier to get an assist playing with Ronaldo
What should we expect from him this season ? It's always hard to predict
Find it quite easy. Nothing
He is their Sanchez. Cant move him on due to his wages and he doesnt suit Emery.
The difference being that Ozil is still quality on the ball.
If you think that is enough nowadays to spray some passes around....if you are shit without the ball, you are hopeless. That was possible 20 years ago and guys like Özil got carried and their quality on the ball outweighted their lack of workrate, but nowadays you need 11 players in sync, especially with the pressing tactics everyone adopted. I also dont see any hunger in him.
The only options i see for him after Arsenal are MLS, China or Turkey. Wont be missed.
He's going to have his best season yet and get 25+ assists / 15 goals.
Or be last season's Özil but hopefully Ceballos will be able to give us some creativity when we need it. I hope they can play together but it might leave us too exposed.
He will probably leave for Turkey in the summer if he can't ressurect his Arsenal career.
Or be last season's Özil but hopefully Ceballos will be able to give us some creativity when we need it. I hope they can play together but it might leave us too exposed.
He will probably leave for Turkey in the summer if he can't ressurect his Arsenal career.
Miss the days when CAF wanted this clown for "free", imagine adding his 350k per week on top of our leeches.
Özil had fairly good stats in terms of running distance, interceptions etc. not too long ago.
Don’t know not to embed tweets but have you seen the clip on Twitter of a gang wielding a knife trying to carjack Ozil?, only for Kolasnic to jump out and chase them off. ( I think it’s real anyway) Kolasnic is a badass.
A thoroughly unpleasant individual and faded talent who peaked in 2012.
Cheers, I suppose it’s a bit stupid to go at a man with a big knife, but Kolasnic has some guts.
Became my favourite Arsenal player right there. That's how I hope I would react if ever in that situation.
Ozil closing the door and driving off, not so much.
His wife, and Kolasinac's wife are both in the car.
You just going to let your missus be harmed, big lad?
Those eastern lads are made of different stuff. The guys clearly a tank and takes no shit! glad he’s ok, could have been so much worse if the guy with the knife wasn’t a huge coward himself.
Fair fecks to kolasinac the beast.
This.
I've no idea how I'd react. I hope I would not leave a friend to fend for himself against two guys with knives, little lad.
Maybe Ozil was about to run them over, that sounds like me.