Wengar in defence of Ozil

Arsene Wenger once again came in defence of the club record signing Mesut Ozil after his poor performances at the start of the season. The German international has not been on the scoresheet for several months for Arsenal, while it has also not provided his trademark assist since March. The 24-year-old looked especially poor in the recent 2-2 draw with Manchester City with many of the opinion that Arsenal were almost playing with 10 men due to the conspicuous absence of Ozil.

Wenger, who has had to defend Ozil in the past, has said that people should not look at the German from one point of view. After having spent £ 42.5 million on one player, Arsenal fans can expect more from the former Real Madrid star. However, he has been looking woefully short of confidence and it has prevented him from making the right decision on more than one occasion. In the second half of last season, tiredness was attributed towards the performance. This time around, the reason for the poor performances is not clear.

Wenger says that the critics should start looking at the overall contribution that Ozil makes in a game rather than just the highlighting issues like goals and assists. Ozil will be making a return to German football when Arsenal take on Borussia Dortmund in the first group match of the Champions League. “People always have this kind of attitude about him. He worked hard against City and he played quite well. You see a good Ozil when you watch the game again. Then you realise his timing, his quality of the pass and something you can be frustrated during the game but you must not overreact. When you watch the game in a cool manner, you see what a good player he is,” said Wenger.