Arsenal: Mesut Ozil and the balance of control and creativity

Lucas Torreira stated that Mesut Ozil is a joy to play with at Arsenal because he rarely gives the ball away. The German brilliantly balances control and creativity.

Mesut Ozil is a truly frustrating player. His inconsistency is wild, his lack of resolve and attitude is concerning at times, and he does not always produce as a player of his talent should. And yet, when the Arsenal midfielder does play at his best, he is indeed a truly phenomenal player.

Catch the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal podcast right here

For this piece, I will ignore the infuriations with Ozil’s game and focus on when he is playing his best, primarily because I love watching him play when he is at his best and am quite happy for the purposes of my own happiness to solely focus on that.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

And there is a specific brilliance that I want to highlight about Ozil’s genius. Here is Lucas Torreira, speaking this week, on what it is like to play with Ozil and why he is such a wonderful midfield teammate to have:

"“We know that Mesut is a top player. If you pass him the ball he will hardly ever give it away. He plays with simplicity and he’s got a lot of quality, which makes us very calm. As a midfielder I know that if I pass him the ball I can be calm.”"

Torreira is correct. Ozil does rarely lose the ball, especially cheaply when in his own half, with the team vulnerable to turnovers. And it is a great skill to have. But there is often an overvaluation of players who simply pass the ball sideways and keep the game ticking over.

What is so brilliant about Ozil’s play is that he is able to balance control with creativity. He does not just play the safe pass, he pushes the envelope, he creates chances, he takes risks, and he still maintains possession and a high pass completion rate. And the stats support it.

Per 90 minutes, this is the first season that Ozil has dropped below three chances created. In his first season, he created 3.2 chances per 90 minutes. Then 3.3, 4.3, 3.2 and 3.5. Meanwhile, his pass accuracy has never dropped below 86%, all the while completing over 60 passes per game. Ozil is both at the heart of the game in terms of its structure and pattern and also in regards the chances that he creates.

Oftentimes, players fall into one category or the other. They are either too safe with their passing, controlling the match without every progressing the play, or are too creative and risky, committing a high frequency of turnovers that end up hurting the team more than helping it.

This is the brilliance of Ozil. He treads the fine line between control and creativity. It is just a shame that he cannot do so every week.