Arsenal: Life without Mesut Ozil far from apocalyptic

Mesut Ozil has just latched onto a new deal at Arsenal, but there is talk that he has no future at the club. It’s not nearly as bad as it sounds.

Arsenal have an abundance of creative midfield talent, but Mesut Ozil takes the cake as then best of the best. No matter what people say, when Ozil is at his best, there is no one in the world that does what he does better.

Which is why it may seem kind of problematic that there is chatter that he doesn’t fit into the plans of new manager Unai Emery. Now, granted, no one has said as much, but when you look at the teams Emery has managed in the past, Ozil doesn’t exactly fit the billing.

He isn’t a high-presser. He isn’t someone to fight for then ball. He is, as many have pointed out, a luxury player. If things are going great, so is Ozil. But if things start turning south, well, you can do a lot better than Ozil.

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I have endorsed the idea of selling Ozil before, if the right price can be met, which I understand is a bit of a dicey suggestion, but in response, I want to visit what this team would be like without such a “luxury” player, because I don’t think it would be as bad as it seems.

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Arsenal’s problems are nowhere in the vicinity of creating chances. They have zero problem with creating chances. Because their list of options is boundless. They never run out. Yes, Ozil is the best, but he’s the best at what Arsenal do best. There’s a correlation, obviously, and taking the best away may cause a dent, but it would be far from insurmountable.

Also because the new way that Arsenal is built, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang‘s ease of access and Alexandre Lacazette‘s ability to create for himself and for his team mates, the attack is simplifying. Ozil was there to create amid the lack of other options for the Gunners.

He was the solution to the team’s deficiencies. But since those deficiencies were solved, they have gotten stronger and stronger and built around as well, to the point that the Ozil dependency no longer exists.

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And that is why, for something like £40m-£50m, I would bid farewell to Ozil and build towards the future. If he doesn’t fit Emery’s plans, then there’s no point trying to force it.