January was not the best of months for Arsenal. In a tough set of games against Newcastle United, Liverpool, Stoke City and Chelsea, the Gunners could get only one win and failed to score in two of the games. Coincidentally or not, Mesut Özil didn’t register a goal or an assist in which of those games – obviously he missed the game at Britannia Stadium. But the main point is Arsenal can’t really do much without the best of Özil these days and this is the biggest problem for Arsène Wenger’s side this season. When the German has a day off or doesn’t perform as he should, there is no one else (excluding Alexis Sánchez) of the same calibre to stand up and show support. It’s even worse if Arsenal step on the pitch and the German is not there – the team looks apathetic and lacks a creative player, someone who is always creating angles and space to receive, distribute, create and maintain possession.
Twitter: Mesut Özil received his PFA Fans’ Player of the Month Award for December on Monday. https://t.co/5imMifsPPN (@MesutOzilStats)
Alexis has finally returned from injury and Francis Coquelin is getting back to full fitness. Perhaps with these additions and possibly the comeback of Santi Cazorla & Danny Welbeck in the next weeks, Arsenal will be stronger to deal with a difficult and decisive period of the campaign.
January Report
The Gunners started the year with a scrappy win against Newcastle at the Emirates Stadium. The next three fixtures would prove to be crucial (vs. Liverpool, Stoke City, Chelsea) but Arsenal could not grab a win in each of these games.
Özil could only be described as a bystander, considering he did not contribute a goal or assist.
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