Arsene Wenger has probably the best squad of midfield players in the Premier League. Chelsea have a better starting five, for sure, but Arsenal have strength in depth and serious quality in every area.
But does Wenger’s most expensive midfielder, the £42 million (Dh235m) Mesut Ozil, merit a place in his starting XI? No. Arsenal are a far more effective side without him.
Wenger plays 4-5-1, which becomes 4-3-3 at various times during the 90 minutes. It makes the two wide players particularly important as they are expected to do a defensive job one minute before joining the attack at pace.
Ozil is not very good at defending and does not offer the same pace on the break as the likes of Danny Welbeck, Theo Walcott or even Santo Cazorla.
With Welbeck fit again, Wenger will have a choice to make when Alexis Sanchez also returns from a hamstring problem, which could be as soon as Leicester City at home on Tuesday.
The French manager is already trying to cram a host of players into his central three.
When they are all fit you have Cazorla, Aaron Ramsey, Francis Coquelin, Mathieu Flamini, Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain, Jack Wilshere, Tomas Rosicky and Mikel Arteta.
That leaves Welbeck, Walcott, Sanchez and Ozil competing to play out wide. Sanchez is undroppable, Walcott and Welbeck are better finishers than Ozil. He is in danger of becoming an expensive bench warmer.
It is fine to stick him in for a home game against relegation candidates, but Arsenal are better in away games without him – see the 2-0 win at Manchester City.
Do not forget how little defensive effort Ozil offered in the 6-3 loss at City last season and the 5-0 drubbing at Liverpool.
Welbeck, on the other hand, offers Arsenal another dimension. He may not be thrilled about playing on the wing, but he beat his man for pace regularly yesterday and set up his team’s goal. He is also great in the air.
More importantly, he has the engine to keep running up and down the flank – Ozil does not seem to have that.
Ozil was not specifically to blame for yesterday’s defeat at Spurs, but the home side did dominate possession.
It is clear that, in picking Ozil, Wenger is losing some defensive solidity. He needs to decide if Ozil’s forward play is worth that sacrifice.
twoods@thenational.ae
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