Arsenal: Dani Ceballos, the beginning or the end of Mesut Ozil?

With Arsenal’s newest midfield addition, Dani Ceballos, entering the frame, does this spell the end of Mesut Ozil or could it be a brand new beginning?

Arsenal have finally come to life in the transfer window. After months of anxiety-inducing inactivity, the club has finally loosened the purse strings and pulled out the checkbook.

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Four signings have either been officially announced or on the verge of being announced: Nicolas Pepe, Gabriel Martinelli, Dani Ceballos and William Saliba, who will be joining up with the squad next season after being loaned back to Saint-Etienne.

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Ceballos, who is only joining the club on a season-long loan from Real Madrid, looks determined to force himself into the first team. But will he be played in place of Mesut Ozil in a deeper attacking midfield role or could he feature alongside the German? Moreover, despite Ceballos only being brought in for a brief period, does it signify the end for the opinion-dividing Ozil or will his arrival aid Arsenal’s creative fulcrum, just as Santi Cazorla did?

If Ceballos was brought in to promote a 4-3-3 flat formation, that may signify the end for the German playmaker. Many teams, including the two best sides in the world last season, Liverpool and Manchester City, have moved to the evolved variation of the 4-3-3 formation which does not call for a traditional number 10. It usually requires a defensive midfielder, a box-to-box midfielder and a deep-lying creator, none of which accommodate Ozil.

If Emery was to opt for this formation, the starting three players in midfield would most likely be Granit Xhaka, Lucas Torreira and Ceballos. Ozil would be extremely low down the pecking order, perhaps even behind that of French youngster Matteo Guendouzi, who is better suited to a more natural central midfield role.

All is not lost for Ozil, though. There is no saying that Emery wants to switch to a different formation, considering the fact that Ozil has actually had a relatively impressive pre-season thus far. If Ozil continues his decent displays, it may draw the end for a different controversial player.

Granit Xhaka could find his place in the starting XI under threat from Ceballos’ arrival. If Emery uses the 4-2-3-1 shape, a more traditional version of a 4-3-3, it will likely feature Ozil in a number 10 role. This way, Torreira and Ceballos would be the midfield pivot behind him, excluding the Swiss international.

One final possibility is that Ceballos was not brought in as a replacement for that of Xhaka or Ozil. Considering the Spanish midfielder was only brought in on a season-long loan, with no reported option to buy, it is also possible that he was brought in solely to provide competition to the midfield players already at the club. Of course, there will also be rotation between all of these systems and midfield personnel groupings.

Whatever way one decides to look at the midfield situation, it is evident that the new regime in place is actively trying to improve it. Whether the Ceballos signing means the end or the beginning for Ozil is still to be determined, and will only be known when the season begins, but Ozil must now rise to the occasion because Arsenal are moving forward, with or without him.