Just how disappointing was Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil’s display against Bayern Munich?

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After mounting speculation surrounding Mesut Ozil’s position in Arsenal’s starting XI, the German had to show up against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena. Yet, during the Gunner’s biggest fixture of the season so far, Mesut Ozil failed to find second gear. The German played so poorly that he rated four out of ten on The Boot Room’s post-match player reviews.

For a player that was so integral to his side last year, Ozil is slowly becoming a figure of frustration in the eyes of the Arsenal fans, and with performances like his showing in Munich, it is easy to see why.

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The German was often seen lazily strolling around the pitch, failing to press when needed. For Bayern’s first goal, Ozil fails to stop Arjen Robben from cutting in onto his left foot. This opens up a striking opportunity for the Dutchman, who found the top left corner with his shot.

Although the strike was unstoppable, the build-up was highly predictable. Robben has founded a career off coming in from the right and shooting with his left foot and the Arsenal players will have been made aware of this in the pre-match video footage. The Gunners’ will have been told to show the Dutchman down the wing, and onto his weak foot, every time.

Yet, Ozil, who spotted the space he needed to cover, stood flat-footed, allowing Robben to break the deadlock. However, others hold responsibility too. Coquelin pressed far to aggressively and as the defensive midfielder, he should have seen the danger and shaped his body to send the Dutchman down the line.

Had Coquelin done this, Mesut Ozil, who is given creative freedom with little defensive responsibility, would have been well placed as he blocked the passing lane to Xabi Alonso, the man who conducts Bayern’s tempo and often controls the pace of games. However, the lack of effort shown by Ozil to help his team-mate break up play is something that will aggrieve fans for a long time after this 5-1 defeat.

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In other areas of the game, Mesut Ozil failed to have any influence on Arsenal’s attacking build-up, creating one chance and only attempting 20 passes during the entire 90 minutes. In comparison, goalkeeper Manuel Neuer attempted the same number of passes, as Bayern piled more misery onto Arsenal’s season.

Before kick-off, Arsenal were hopeful and Bayern were wary. Arturo Vidal promised to do everything he could to stop Ozil. In hindsight, Vidal will now be wondering whether he was even on the same pitch as the German. If this performance doesn’t lead to Ozil being benched, more and more fans will begin to question the already under-fire Arsene Wenger and his team selection.

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