Arsenal: Mesut Ozil the key to best version of 2018/19

When pondering what Arsenal need to do to be the best version of themselves next season, there is one player that continually comes to the forefront of my mind: Mesut Ozil. The German is the key to getting the best out of the Gunners.

As I think about the season to come, the prospects that await Arsenal, the style that Unai Emery may implement and the realistic — and not so realistic — aims for the campaign, I keep pondering on what they must do to get their best version of themselves.

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Who are the players that need to be built around? What tactics and strategies should Emery employ? Who are the key players that need to be protected, that need to stay fit, and that Emery needs to be able to get the best out of?

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In trying to formulate my thinking on these questions, I cannot help but think about the importance of Mesut Ozil and the essential nature of being able to put the support around him so that he can truly flourish.

I believe that Ozil is the best player in this squad. While his inconsistencies infuriate me, his tendency to be ill is curious, and his anonymity in the big games is certainly questionable, in regards to natural ability, there is no other individual in this squad that can match him.

And I also believe that Arsenal are at their best when Ozil is at his best, and so it is vital that Emery is able to provide the right environment so that the German can be allowed to express himself, to control games, and to be the creative hub of the attack.

In the five years that he has been at the club, the most successful matches and periods have come when Ozil has been put in the right positions to excel. He is relinquished from defensive responsibility, he is not shackled by having to provide width in the final third, he is afforded the freedom to roam throughout the pitch, he has options and movement and dynamic runs when he is on the ball, and he is simply the facilitator at the heart of the machine.

The problem is that he requires all of this. He cannot create these things on his own and he cannot work outside of that support. They must be provided for him. Can Arsenal do that next season? Well, quite possibly.

The introduction of Lucas Torreira alongside Granit Xhaka and Aaron Ramsey provides a strong and stable midfield base for Ozil to drift off of; Danny Welbeck and Henrikh Mkhitaryan offer width and directness on the ball; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette bring great movement and pace in and around the penalty area; Hector Bellerin is a continual outlet down the right flank.

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That, for me, is the best version of this Arsenal team because it is the best version of Mesut Ozil. Whether Emery agrees or not is another question, but I hope that we will get to see it this coming year.