On 2. September 2013, Özil joined Arsenal from Real Madrid for 42.5 million pounds. This was the most expensive transfer ever paid for a German player and still is today. Özil was almost certain that he would stay at Real Madrid, but he later realised the coaches and the boss had lost faith on him. One of the major reason for joining Arsenal was because of Arséne Wenger. Özil needed a manager who respected him and as he stated at the Evening Standard “am really looking forward to it because I have the faith of the coach. I had spoken to him at length on the telephone, he explained his plans and that he has faith in me — that is what I need as a player. Wenger gives me the faith and I can develop further. I know what I can do and I know I could make the grade with any club because I’m so convinced in myself, but if I don’t feel people have faith in me, then that is why I had to leave and at Arsenal, I feel I have this fully”.
Özil made his debut for Arsenal against Sunderland on 14. September 2013 and in the same game, Mesut got his first assist after only 11 minutes of play when Olivier Giroud made it 1-0 and the game ended 3-1 and in his first home game for Arsenal he took part in every goal that was scored. Özil scored his first goal in a champions league game versus Napoli. Mesut scored his first goal in the Premier league on the 19th of October versus Norwich City. Özil made it to UEFA team of the year. In December Özil scored two in two matches later got a minor shoulder injury and missed the last match in December. It took Mesut a quite some time to score his first goal in 2014 but it came in late Mars it came in a 4-1 victory over Everton in quarterfinals FA. On 20 April Özil made a big impact in the 3-0 victory over Hull City. According to Arsenal.com, Arséne Wenger after the game praised Mesut saying "Mesut Özil is very important for the team. He's been missed while he's been injured. We've missed some very important players in an important period of the season. We're really pleased to have people like him back in the team and performing at the top level because that's what we need." Özil finished his first season with 13 assists and 7 goals.
Photo: https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/match-reports/sunderland-1-3-arsenal-mesut-ozil-2263935
After the World Cup win with Germany in 2014, Özil returned to Arsenal. He started the season well, then he got injured in October which left him out for 10-12 weeks. Özil missed out on the remaining Champions’ League group games and four international games. After three months on the sidelines, Özil returned in January. In his second season, Özil ended the season with 5 goals and seven assists in 31 appearances in all competitions.
At the beginning of the 2015-16 season, Wenger predicted that Özil would have his best season and he was not wrong. Özil set a Premier League record being the first ever player to assist in six consecutive matches. He later added his seventh with an assist against Wes Brown. On 2. February, Özil created ten chances against Southampton, beating his own record of nine chances. Özil ended the season with 20 assists, 19 in the Premier League. He leads the charts in assists and only Thierry Henry has assisted more than him in one season with 20 assists. In addition, Özil scored 8 goals in all competition his fantastic performances earned him the Arsenal player of the season award.📷
After his fantastic season, Özil struggled to perform in the 2016-17 season. Also, Arsenal ended fifth in the Premier League. It was the first time Arsenal ended outside the top four since 1996. He was criticised for a little influence and creativity but despite his criticism, Wenger retained his faith in him. He ended the season with 8 league goals and 9 assists.
In the 2017-18 season, there is a lot of speculation about his future at arsenal. His contract is set to expire at the end of the season. According to The Mirror, Özil has been linked with moves to Juventus, Barcelona and Manchester United. But with Coutinho joining Barcelona and Sanchez moving closer and closer to United, Özil might Join Juventus. On the other hand, according to the Telegraph, Arsenal are increasingly confident to extend his contract. Arsenal and Özil are negotiating over a new deal and Wenger said there is “still an opportunity for him to stay”.
Post by: Guðjón & Gylfi
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