Mesut Ozil says he’s satisfied with the season he’s had so far, but admits he can play better. The German is more concerned that the team is performing overall, however, and believes that’s more important than any one individual shining.
Since his £42.5m arrival, Ozil has scored 5 goals and made 9 assists, yet there have still been grumblings from some fans about his contribution.
Leaving aside the fact it took players as good as Bergkamp, Henry and Pires some time to settle at the club and in English football, it seems extraordinarily churlish as we sit top of the Premier League.
But the former Real Madrid man is sure he can continue to play a key role in Arsenal’s season. In an interview with the Mirror, he said, “I know I can play better, I know what potential I have. But the most important thing is that everything works well at the moment with the team.
“I don’t really feel any pressure. I just have fun with it all, I enjoy what I’m doing, it’s my dream to be here and I’m just very very happy that I can be here.
“I really enjoy it, I appreciate being here and it’s great to be in this great team. I also think as a footballer it’s good to be here and give something back to the club and to the fans. I want to really make the most of my potential as a player and be there for the team.”
He also paid tribute to the Arsenal fans who have, for the most part, backed him to the hilt since joining.
“The fans they really push you. I was really accepted well here and as a team they expect us to do well, they push us a lot. That means a lot for us players, we have fans who are right behind us for 90 minutes it doesn’t matter whether we are winning or losing.
“That’s really important for the team and our goal for the team is to have a good performance and good results to say thank you to the fans. I’m really happy to be part of a team that has such great fans.”
Excepted / accepted.
Except / Expect.
Give this guy a cookie!
It’s the Mirror article. I read the interview earlier on their site and it’s riddled with errors. (You’ll be shocked to hear)
I’m very cross at John Cross for his grammatical oversights
*I’lll get my coat*
John cross knows his english
He will dazzle today. Mark me words.
I’m really happy to be the fan of a team of a team that has such great players
maybe its cause he has been one of the best German players in the last couple of seasons but people forget that he has only been in England for a couple of months yet he has integrated into this arsenal team almost automatically but it still takes time to find consistency in a new country and i think he will definitely start hitting the form he had at real madrid ( maybe just in time for our most crucial period) COYG!!
Remember Pires, disappointing for a few months then fantastic. And Ozil hasn’t been as disappointing, some great assists and even goals.
Ramsey due back soon as well. Hopefully with renewed energy and his goal scoring boots!
if he’s going to get better than he already is, they might as well give us the league title now. oh, and the FA Cup whilst they’re at it.
And the CL trophy, Classic Treble here, we come!
I should wake up.
It’s only the fan’s job, and his/her only job, to dream! So why not! TREBLE PLEEJ
Every quote I hear from this guy makes me think he’s been thoroughly media trained.
He says a lot without saying much at all, probably a result of his time at Real Madrid where absolutely EVERYTHING is analysed.
That said. i’d rather hear this than a potentially ‘scandalous’ comment a la Joey Barton.
well, that and the German’s tend to be pretty nice people for the most part. speak decent to excellent English which helps them adapt and fit in with the team. helps them enjoy England, too.
I’m not doubting he’s a nice guy with a good level of intelligence, it just seems like everything he says is just a little too media friendly.
Either way, its a good problem to have when your players don’t feel the need to discuss politics, religion or other non football matters.
i hope he steps it up soon , its the transfer window in the dream team ! do i trade him for hazzard or stay faithful ?? lol
Just fuckin no man fuckin never for me
Just say no to Chelsea. That shit aint good fer yerr.
I actually think he’s playing pretty well, I don’t think you have to do pirouettes and beat 4 men at a time to be having an amazing game …
Also, what would definitely improve his contribution is if he had someone pacey in front of him to pass long to … looking at you Draxler *cough*
for some reason this made me think back to that 50 yard pass/assist by Cesc for Nicky B in the champs league a few years back.
If you’ve got some one who can put the ball on the end of your toe from that far, you don’t need pace!
Patience brethren. If he is playing well and could still improve, then god help the rest of the league! COYG!!
The man is leading the charts in Europe with the most number of chances created this season. Yet he’s not ‘in form’. I can’t imagine what he can do when he’s actually in form!
Just wanna chime in with a somewhat off topic point first but I’m after 20 years finally getting to see the lads play today. and I’m over from Dublin to see it. Went all tourist and did the stadium tour yesterday filled me with immense pride to be a supporter of such a team. Looking forward to being surrounded by fellow gooners and a win to boot. Now to keep this on topic I think ozil is very good at playing football.
@Thaat Arsenal Guy Joey (Dum)Barton is like a broken sewage pipe spewing forth effluence uncontrollably.There really is no beginning to his talent.
Mesut Ozil is an anagram of Lo Im zest….u?
Right I’ll put on my coat and go forth and multiply
Slow and steady with Özil. He does a lot that goes unnoticed as it is often subtle link up play.
Of course he can get better but that is all about getting more integrated with the team, next season, that’s when we will see him really take off !
Many have come to the Premiership as heroes and left with their tail between their legs, some times a lot more promptly than expected. Ozil has already proven he can make a significant impact but still needs to adjust to the English way of football. I have no doubt he will be one of our greatest signings ever. Let’s not be like the rest of the rabble supporters amongst the EPL who bully and oppose teams, managers and players when they are underperforming and support one of our prize assets.
Saw this about Özil on Reddit a couple of days ago:
http://ladyarse.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/ozil_stats.jpg
fair play , the guy is quality
If you look purely at stats, Ozil is at least matching his previous league goal/assist trends for Madrid (in order of games started — goals — assists): 10/11 – 30 — 6 — 17 11/12 – 30 — 4 — 17 12/13 – 23 — 9 — 13 13/14 – 16 — 4 — 7 If he matches that rate till the end of season you’re looking at something like 32 — 8 — 14 – slightly above average on goals, slightly below average on assists. Overall, par with Madrid form. Therefore, if he improves as expected (plus if you… Read more »
Ozil rocks good on and off pitch especially when handling these media issues
Remember real madrid & the german international team are very strong teams with ozil he is now a gunner, he has work rate when fit, prem football has alot of different teams with different styles, but fast flow at times, ozil can adjust to this look at our injured, or players in falseful positions, coyg
May God be with rest of the premier league and the rest of world football when he hits top form.
Pure genius. Where he improves will become the new messiah.
One of the most selfless footballers in the world. And still only 25, so should only reach his peak 2 to 4 yrs from now. Scary stuff.
Someone said above he tops Europe for chances created. Rather than Ozil stepping up, you could argue it’s the rest of the team that needs to step up and convert his chances into goals.
what a beautiful picture you’ve picked! love mesut, he will amaze everyone today!
Didn’t Ozil finish 2013 in the top5 for most assists in the BPL despite only joining on deadline day? A top player and does work hard for the team creating space and tracking back. This guy is no Arshavin.
“The fans they really push you. I was really accepted well here and as a team they expect us to do well, they push us a lot. That means a lot for us players, we have fans who are right behind us for 90 minutes it doesn’t matter whether we are winning or losing.”
Being a gooner stateside Ive never had the opportunity to attend a game, but its really great hearing players laud our fans like this
Ozil is the worlds best no 10. Which is basically a second striker in the old 442. Imo its the lack of chemistry between him and Giroud thats to blame. Not saying Giroud is a bad player but could u imagine the havok that Ozil would cause with a world class striker in front of him.