Ozil: The Magician

Despite the proliferation of talent over the past decade, the price of £42 million seemed like a bargain for Ozil, one which Arsenal boss Wenger uncharacteristically grabbed with both hands, and one which has paid great dividends. With Ozil’s performances throughout the duration of his time at Real Madrid, some would argue a greater price tag should have been placed on Ozil, despite now becoming the most expensive German player of all time.

Real Madrid bought Ozil for an amount in the region of £12 million in 2010 from German side Werder Bremen. Congratulations to Arsenal on signing one of the world’s most intelligent players, however, why would Real Madrid allow a player described by Ruud Gullit, one of soccers greats, as “technically perfect”, to leave? He remains one of the most underrated players in the world; his humble demeanour off and on the pitch, his unquestionable ability and sportsmanship on the pitch also makes him one of the best midfielders in the sport has ever seen.

But could this be the reason why he failed to survive the pressures of the Bernabeu? Let’s face it, unless you are Ronaldo or Messi, it is unlikely that you’ll ever find yourself being as important as the club you play for.

Whilst in his native Germany, Ozil displayed performances him bring in double-figured assists on a season-by-season basis. There were 15 in his first season for Bremen with 3 goals, and 9 goals plus 17 assists in 31 Bundesliga appearances in his second. The next season saw Ozil finish with 25 assists in all competitions, the highest by any player in the world and this achievement placed him on the shortlist for 2011-12’s Ballon d’Or the following year, where he even managed to improve his season tally to 26 assists.

Due to the high demand for players with a high capacity for assisting attacking play around the world, even Real Madrid seemed to be punishing themselves through his sale, and have since relied on the ability of their new signing, Luka Modric from Tottenham, whilst focusing on the proliferation of their hot prospects – including the Brazilian Casemiro and the impressive Spaniard Isco.

In terms of impact, Ozil was, and has been the unrivalled master of assists to every team he has played for. Ozil has continued to bring the sort of contribution that players rarely illustrate these days; he represents the perfection of the Classic No.10 position, following in the footsteps of players such as Riquelme, Zidane and Maradona, and continuing on his legacy which will be remembered for years to come.