Arsenal: Mesut Ozil pressuring Granit Xhaka’s relevance

Arsenal brought in Granit Xhaka primarily for his passing from deep, but Mesut Ozil’s revelation may be challenging the Swiss’s very relevance.

Arsenal seem to have struck gold by moving Mesut Ozil to a deeper position, but there may be bystanders who fall by the wayside if this transformation sticks. He created eight chances and led the team in touches against Newcastle in what was truly a marvelous performance.

If you would have asked me – what’s more likely, Ozil learns to play deeper or Granit Xhaka learns to cut the mistakes, I’d have chosen the latter 99 times out of 100. I’d have been wrong. Because while Xhaka did master cutting out some of his mistakes – the ball-loss and the discipline – he has not cut out the wayward passing.

Meanwhile, Ozil has clearly learned to play deeper. Not in a defensive role, obviously, but from deeper positions, where he can drive the attack, rather than sit along as a passenger.

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It may not seem to have much of an effect on Xhaka, but the Swiss was clearly bought for one big reason – his ability to pass out of the back. He could start attacks from deep with his passing, but that’s where Ozil’s re-emergence has challenged him.

If Ozil is dropping deeper to receive the ball and then press it forward on his own, then what’s the point in Xhaka’s passing? Another weapon? That’s fine and all, but Xhaka’s longballs are starting to look less threatening than Marauding Mesut Ozil, a phrase I never thought I’d say.

In the end, we may be learning that the better option may be to swap to a defensive, ball-winning midfielder who can claim the ball, give it to Ozil, and let the German maestro push forward and create one of his 18 chances on any given game day.

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That’s the goal, after all. The goal is to create a smooth transition from defense to attack. It was never an easy task for Arsenal. Santi Cazorla did a great job at it, but in his absence, the Gunners turned to Granit Xhaka’s passing, which has had it’s upside, but plenty of downside as well.

Ramsey has been there as well, but his unpredictability and need to be free make it illogical to try to tie him down to any given role.

Ozil, however, may be solving it all. he sat deeper on the pitch than Jack Wilshere or Alex Iwobi and he touched the ball more than anyone else. It was a masterclass for him, scoring the winning goal and creating eight clear chances.

This was Ozil at his best, and it was Ozil playing a role that Arsenal haven’t been able to bridge over.

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The challenge for Xhaka is to prove that his passing can improve to the point that it is an even quicker counter-attacking weapon than Ozil leading a fast break. Because as it stands, his stock has to be dipping as other pivoting options make themselves available.