IN 2013 Arsenal broke their transfer record to bring Mesut Özil to the club amidst much fanfare and excitement. 121 goals and assists later, Özil is now out of both Arsenal’s Premier League and Europa League squads. Whilst the topic of Mesut Özil sparks controversy and debate, few will argue that he has not contributed massively to both Arsenal and the Premier League. Let’s take a moment to appreciate Mesut Özil.
Let’s take a look at Özil’s goal contributions over the years. In his first season at the club, Özil settled in well, registering 21 goal contributions and helping Arsenal on their way to ending a 9-year trophy drought. 2014/15 was again a decent season for Özil with 14 goal contributions but the best was yet to come.
2015/16 gave Arsenal fans a true look at the 40 million man in a season where Arsenal were, for the first time in a long time, truly title contenders. Whilst Özil narrowly missed out on the Premier league record tally, he eclipsed all others in terms of assists provided.
He was in his prime, and the best creative player in the Premier League and arguably the world.
The next season wasn’t bad for Özil either, providing 26 goal contributions and picking up another Fa cup along the way.
2017/18 saw 19 goal contributions.
Despite a reduced output since, the above figures and contributions can simply not be denied. Perhaps the next time you think of Özil you will forget of his woeful last season and instead remember how he graced football through the years.
By Arjun Thakar St Olave’s Grammar School
