Arsenal: Goals Should Not Cloud Alexis Sanchez And Mesut Ozil

Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil scored Arsenal’s crucial goals in their win over Middlesbrough. But that shouldn’t cloud their sub-standard displays.

Arsenal were good enough to beat Middlesbrough on Monday night. After just three wins since February 11th, two of which coming against non-league opposition in the FA Cup, this was a case of grinding out a result no matter how difficult or mechanical the method.

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The two goals came through the Gunners’ most prolific attackers in recent years, Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil. The first was a terrific freekick from the Chilean, dipping and diving over the wall, leaving Brad Guzan stranded. The second was a well-struck shot from Ozil, lashing home after Aaron Ramsey had the presence of mind to chest the ball down for the German as his own chances of unleashing a powerful and threatening strike were poor.

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And those goals were, for the most part, the only pieces of real quality that Arsenal were able to produce throughout the 90 minutes. But they have seemingly clouded over the fact that Ozil and Sanchez were, for much of the game, sub-standard once again. This is an extract from ESPN’s piece on the game, discussing the anonymous display of Ozil:

"“For lengthy periods of this encounter, Ozil was a passenger, spending more time running away from the ball than looking for it, but he at least came up with the goods when it mattered. When Arsenal are up against it, though, as they were for periods of this game, Ozil is a luxury that Arsene Wenger’s team simply cannot afford to accommodate.”"

And while that piece centred on Ozil’s poor performance, Sanchez, although a little sharper in the final third and slightly more willing to take risks to create chances, was also well below his expected level. As he has done in a number of games recently, he gave the ball away far too often, cutting in off of the left wing, and failed to undertake his defensive duties at times as well.

Other than in fits and starts, neither Ozil nor Sanchez have produced at a level that their price tags would demand and their reputation expects. The goals, while exquisite in their own right, were rare pieces of quality in performances littered with misplaced passes, a lack of movement and untimely, wasteful dribbles.

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Both were once again underwhelming for much of the game. And yet, Arsenal have both to thank for their crucial contributions, securing the three points. When we analyse the game, though, we should not let their goals cloud what were undoubtedly poor performances.