Arsenal: The one stat that shows Mesut Ozil is challenging his critics

Mesut Ozil has been heavily criticised for his supposed lack of commitment to Arsenal football club, questioning the influence that he has on games. However, here is one stat that proves how the German is brilliantly challenging his critics this season.

After transfer deadline day passed and it was evident that Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez would be staying at Arsenal, the focus of the fans and the media quickly turned to the character of the two players. Would they be committed to a club that they could very likely not be playing for next season?

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It was a fair question to ask. It still is a fair question to ask, especially of Ozil, whose effort and desire to win has been doubted in the past. And when the German did feature earlier in the season, it’s fair to say that he did not look all that interested.

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His usually languid and lethargic body language was accentuated, he was, on multiple occasions, caught lazy in his defending, especially for Watford’s final goal in their shock 2-1 win, and when he didn’t play due to injury, Alex Iwobi and Danny Welbeck deputised with surprising effectiveness, with some beginning to question the utility of the German, perhaps suggesting that Arsenal would be better served without him.

However, fast forward just a few weeks and a few archetypal, Ozil-at-his-best performances, and it is clear to see that, although such questions may still hang over his head, the doubting of his quality is perhaps a little harsh. And there is one stat that is especially delineative of this.

The stat involves key passes made (this, for most mainstream statistician services is the same as chances created). Per Squawka, Ozil has made 28 key passes this season, at a rate of 4.18 key passes per 90 minutes. That is a remarkably high number. To put that into context, the next highest in Jesus Gamez of Newcastle, at 3.53. And the only reason that is so high is because he has played just 102 minutes of football so far this year and is benefitting from the anomalies that a small sample size can engineer.

Who Scored actually have a slightly different tally for Ozil. I wanted to include both to give the full picture of his dominance. Who Scored state that Ozil has completed 30 key passes — I am not sure why there is variance in this number, but I am sure there is a valid reason somewhere. That is the best in the Premier League, matched by only Kevin de Bruyne. But de Bruyne has played 839 minutes; Ozil has played just 572 minutes. For reference, Squawka state that de Bruyne has made 24 key passes this season.

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Such dominance in the chance creation aspect of the game, which is perhaps the most important responsibility of an attacking midfielder, shows the quality and the influence of Ozil this season. He has been outstanding, no matter what the papers may say or what was thought earlier in the year.