Just before we get carried away

Madrid’s Loss

While football lovers are yet to come to reality with Chelsea’s best player Juan Mata being on the bench, a bombshell rocked the footballing world: Real Madrid offloads Mesut Ozil. Suffice to say that this is one of the most shocking transfers ever. In a window when big clubs dug their heels to keep want away players like Luis Suarez, Wayne Rooney and Keisuke Honda, Real Madrid, a club that cannot be bullied seemed to shoot themselves in the foot by kicking out their second best player. Who could have thought that a player who scored 27 goals, and assisted 71 in 159 games after three seasons would be shipped out in a blink of an eye? Real Madrid simply made a meal of his weaknesses and committed a transfer sacrilege. Essentially, they have lost a selfless and clever playmaker in Mesut Ozil. Good luck Madrid.

Ozil to Arsenal

Exactly 48 hours after Arsenal Manager Arsene Wenger declared that he won’t be forced into panic buys, he delivered his promise of a marquee signing in the shape of Mesut Ozil for a club record £42.5m. On one hand, it a good statement signing that Arsenal fans have always craved for. Also, it portrays Arsenal as an ambitious club who want to combine off-the-field success with on-the-field-success once again. On the other hand however, it looks like a panic buy which has raised more questions than answers. Firstly, was Ozil their target all along? Secondly, is he the answer to Arsenal’s woes? More critically, how will the German Messi fit into Arsenal?

How Arsenal plays

Currently, Arsene Wenger’s men play a 4-2-3-1 formation. Typically, it’s Gibbs-Mertasacker-Koscienly and Sagna at the back, Wilshere and Arteta as defensive cum central midfielders, Podolski-Cazorla and Walcott as attacking midfielders and Giroud up front. Ozil’s heavenly position is in the hole, just behind striker which is currently occupied by the ever impressive ambidextrous Santiago Cazorla. Playing either of them wide effectively reduces their total output by half. Their best bet however is to shift Cazorla to the quite familiar left wing forward, leaving the creative machine Ozil in the hole. While Ozil’s talent is unquestionable, he will need to adopt the style of fellow Spanish imports, David Silva and Juan Mata in playing fluidly in the final third.

Possibilities

Having said that, the purchase of Ozil translates to less industry in the midfield. He is not known for tracking back to help the defence. This means that the first choice pair of Jack Wilshere and Mikel Arteta who lack brute will have a lot more to do in terms of shielding the rather shaky defence. Another implication of Ozil’s purchase is the relegation of in-form work horse, Aaron Ramsey to the bench. If recent records are anything to go by, Arsene Wenger technically has only two subs to gamble with as Ozil is known not to have 90 minutes in his legs. In an English premier league which has a higher tempo than the La Liga, there’s no other way out than for Ozil to jerk up his stamina and pace. Another question is what happens in games where Arsenal will have to fight to the very end to nick a result? So you see that it’s not all-smiles for the Gunners.

However, if Arsene Wenger plays his cards well, arsenal will be an all-conquering side once again, if not, it will be obvious that Arsene Wenger has played all his cards as his trophiless stint has gathered more weight than he and Arsenal fans will ever be able to bear.




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