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[Infographic] Stats prove Arsenal are a better side with Mesut Ozil

By on September 18, 2017

mesut ozil arsenal

Despite our impressive performance against Chelsea yesterday, the stats prove Arsenal are in fact a better side when Mesut Ozil starts.

Ozil missed the trip to Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon with an apparent knee injury and fans were left fearing the worst when Arsene Wenger also left Alexis Sanchez on the bench.

With our two super-stars replaced by Danny Welbeck and Alex Iwobi in the starting eleven, supporters were bracing themselves for another humiliation at our rivals.

However, Welbeck and Iwobi put-in hard working and disciplined performances in attack to help Arsenal secure a morale-boosting 0-0 draw in a game that we could easily have won.

It led to suggests that Arsenal could be a better side without the likes of Ozil – who’s been criticised for his lack of work off the ball throughout his career in north London.

However, the guys at Oulala have created an infographic that disproves this theory to show that Arsenal are in fact a much better team when Ozil starts.

The stats have been complied from Premier League data ranging back to the 2013/14 campaign and they indicate that Arsenal win more, lose less, score more, concede less and pick up more points when Ozil plays.

I’m personally not surprised in the slightest by the results as Ozil is a world class player who makes us tick when we’re playing well so over the course of over 150 games, the stats will show his improtance.

However, I’m not sure the question was really whether we’re better in general without Ozil, but just whether we’re better equipped to get results in the big away games without him.

We definitely missed his touch of quality in the final third against Chelsea yesterday but I can’t help but think we’d have been far more vlunerable defensively had our German star started instead of Iwobi or Welbeck.

2 Comments

  1. nworie chibueze

    September 18, 2017 at 9:58 pm

    we need need draxler in January

  2. Segun Law

    September 18, 2017 at 10:35 pm

    When I read all the commentaries by the pundits (who, by the way, needed some other narrative to hide the fact they all ate humble pie regarding their match day predictions of an annihilation for Arsenal) about this subject of how much better we are without Ozil and Sanchez, it grates. People forget we have won big games with Ozil and fail to notice the work he does keeping some defenders and midfielders on guard, where they may feel free to bomb forward, as they are wary of the damage he can cause. They say he doesn’t track back but I have seen him engage wingers/midfielders with either Bellerin or Monreal, even tackling to retrieve possession. It all goes unnoticed because he has droopy shoulders and looks frustrated without the ball.
    We beat United and Chelsea 3-0 each with Ozil dictating things and leading the high press; we beat Bayern twice with Ozil playing his heart out; Ozil also starred in the win at Old Trafford in the FA cup. There are many more such big games where he has been a credit to the team. Do games come bigger than these?

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