Arsenal: Fixing Mesut Ozil the ultimate priority

Arsenal’s new manager, whoever that may be, has a lot of work to do. However, there is only one ultimate priority: Fixing Mesut Ozil.

The future is uncertain at Arsenal football club. A new manager, a new brain trust in charge of the goings-on at the club, changes for the players, the fans, and the whole organisation. There is much work to be done.

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And for the new manager, with his focus primarily slanted towards what happens on the pitch, there are many decisions to be made, both from a personnel and tactical standpoint. What style will be implemented? Which players will be kept, which ones sold, and which ones be built around?

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However, there is one problem that must be the ultimate priority of whoever comes in: Fixing Mesut Ozil.

Now, I am not saying that there is anything wrong with Mesut Ozil, per se, though there are clear faults. But it is important that Arsenal are able to put him in the right positions to succeed, something that they have consistently been unable to do throughout his four-and-a-half years in North London.

Here is Jermaine Jenas, speaking on BT Sport after Thursday’s night loss to Atletic Madrid in which Ozil received a lot of criticism, defending Ozil by the misuse of the team:

"“We almost highlight Ozil because we’re asking him to do things that he doesn’t do. He’s not a player that gets the game by the scruff of the neck. He’s not going to track back. That’s not what his job is. That’s not the player they bought.”"

Jenas certainly makes a good point — you can see his full debate with Martin Keown, who is somewhat more pejorative about the midfielder’s commitment and production, in the video above. Ozil is a certain type of player who requires the right conditions to flourish, but when given those conditions, not only does he come alive, but he lifts the team to a new level.

The conditions that Ozil come from the players around him. He requires pace in wide areas with players who are willing to make runs off the ball, something that Arsenal don’t really have; he needs a stable defence and a spraying midfielder who can find him regularly, quickly, and in good positions; he needs a striker who can find spaces in the penalty area for him to pick out.

The Gunners probably have one of those things, a striker. They don’t have the wingers, they definitely don’t have a secure defence, and with Santi Cazorla eternally crocked, they don’t really have a deep-lying midfielder the with the distribution skills.

Next: Arsenal Vs Burnley: Predicted starting XI

This is what the new manager must do. Find the players and the system that gets the best out of Mesut Ozil. It is his most important task.

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