Mesut Ozil is not the answer to Arsenal's problems

If you are an Arsenal fan, then the feeling after signing Mesut Ozil will be exhilarating, almost unbelievable — the heart fluttering in the wait for the next match — the mind thrumming about where he will play, and the pocket probably lighter if you decided to splurge on an ‘Ozil No 11’ jersey. You may even have decided to forgive Arsene Wenger for everything he didn’t do over the last eight years. It’s what new signings do. They lift the morale, give a confidence boost, increase expectations and give something new to cheer about. But they also need to play, to perform and justify hefty price tags. While there is no doubt about Ozil’s sheer class, there is the impending question: does he solve Arsenal’s problems? Take a simple example — Cristiano Ronaldo joining Manchester United after David Beckham left. Same position, younger, trickier, and certainly better at goalscoring. Okay, how about Javi Martinez at Bayern Munich. Closes gaps, performs across backline and through midfield, stronger, more powerful and more direct than any player on their books. Result? Wins everything in first season. [caption id=“attachment_1085615” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] The creative genius, but not quite the game-breaker Arsenal need. Getty Images[/caption] Now analyse Arsenal’s strengths: Midfielders with brilliant technique who create openings (Santi Cazorla, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, Tomasz Rosicky) and wingers/forwards with pace who can run in behind defences (Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lukas Podolski). Add to that a talented reserve team to fall back on. Now the weaknesses: Get hit on the counter attack due to lack of steel in midfield (Mathieu Flamini is only defensive midfielder), soft in central defence (only three center backs and Thomas Vermaelen is out long term, plus four wing-backs) and lack of strikers (Olivier Giroud has been good this season, but apart from him, Yaya Sanogo is very young and Podolski who isn’t a classical striker). Now add Ozil to this. Yes of course, the through balls will come in and the serial assist-maker will add a lot of flair to their midfield, but Arsenal’s midfield doesn’t lack playmakers — it lacks the scrappy gamebreakers — the leader on the pitch — the one who stands like a wall when teams attack. Ozil’s numbers (over the past five seasons he has provided 72 assists, more than any other player in the top five leagues) are phenomenal, but he’s not in the mould of Arsenal’s urgent needs. He won’t track back or play passes from deep ( at least, at Real he didn’t ), he’s not strong in the air and he’s not a great tackler. Arsenal are still wanting for a player in the mould of Patrick Vieira or Gilberto Silva. But Ozil’s natural position is just behind the striker, where Cazorla and Wilshere like to operate. He also does pretty well when playing and cutting in from the right wing, but then Walcott or Chamberlain have to be sacrificed or played out of position to accommodate the German. And using him from there also means not utilising his tremendous eye for a pass . It’s quite unbelievable to imagine Cazorla, Wilshere, Walcott and Ozil all run at defences — but this may simply not happen. Someone will just have to make way or play out of position. This is also the point where you think that injuries may be a boon in disguise to the club this season. Arsenal have done exceptionally well to pull Ozil out of the proverbial magician’s hat, but the fact doesn’t change — to be challenging for trophies on all fronts, they certainly need another world-class striker and a man who can marshall midfield and defence. Ozil, while supremely talented and a genius in his position, is still none of these. Our blogger Gautam Viswanath however, thinks otherwise. Click here to read his article - where he says Ozil will bring back the glory days at Arsenal. The writer of this article tweets @TheFalseNo9