Arsenal: Mesut Ozil does Aaron Ramsey’s job better

Aaron Ramsey plays as the central attacking midfielder in Arsenal’s 4-2-3-1. But Mesut Ozil does his job better, and it showed during Saturday’s win over Watford. Is it time for Unai Emery to make the switch?

Aaron Ramsey is at the heart of everything Arsenal related currently. He is at the heart of the news cycle. He is at the heart of the discussion in the pubs and stanchions. And he is at the heart of the team. It is that last one that is most concerning.

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In Unai Emery’s 4-2-3-1 formation, Ramsey plays as the central attacking midfielder in a trio behind a lone centre-forward. It is the most important position in the system as it provides a link between the midfield and the attack, is tasked with being a creative and controlling influence in the centre of the park, and often instigates pressing periods off the ball. But it is not his most natural.

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Once again, as it has all season, it showed again on Saturday afternoon during Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Watford. Ramsey played for 63 minutes. Emery then got sick of his performance and hooked him for Alex Iwobi, moving Mesut Ozil, a player who has grown up and largely flourished in the role that Ramsey that patrols, central. In that 63 minutes, Ramsey had just 28 touches of the ball. In the remaining 27 minutes, Ozil had 21. He also created one chance during that time. Ramsey didn’t create any.

It was noticeable how much smoother in possession Arsenal were with Ozil playing in Ramsey’s position. They could move the ball through the phases with greater fluidity and consistency. They were more creative in the final third. They had more movement off the ball and they were able to engineer greater angles for themselves in the middle of the pitch when playing out from the back.

Obviously, this isn’t all a result of Ozil playing in Ramsey’s position. And it was clear that Watford were tiring from their high-pressing approach throughout the match. The Gunners’ influence was growing prior to Ramsey’s substitution. But it accelerated once Ozil was shifted into the middle.

Quite frankly, Ozil does Ramsey’s job better than Ramsey does. That is not necessarily a slight on Ramsey. The job that Emery is asking him to do is one that Ozil has done and mastered all his life. Ramsey hasn’t. It is not natural for him to be positioned so high up the pitch. He much prefers starting from deeper and making late runs into the box.

And so, it comes to a very simple question: Is it time for Emery to make the switch and drop Ramsey, such that Ozil is allowed to thrive in his most suited position? This question also comes under the cloud of Ramsey’s uncertain future. The Welshman will not be at the Emirates beyond the end of the season. Surely it makes sense to build this new project around a player, in Ozil, that will be here?

Ramsey is not a bad player. He has his uses. But he is not being used properly. And where he is being used is where Ozil flourishes. It just makes too much sense.