Mesut Ozil can be beautiful to watch, absolutely beautiful. That only makes him all the more frustrating when he continues to put in non-shifts like this.
Arsenal went down in Madrid in what was the most predictable scoreline in Europe this season.
The 1-1 draw with Atletico at the Emirates meant they’d have to score in Spain and, when Arsenal have to do something, they usually don’t. Against one of the meanest defences in world football too, the 1-0 home result was almost a foregone conclusion before the game.
So they bow out of the Europa League and Wenger bows out of the job with no trophy, sixth in the league – worse than fifth last year – and 22 years of European football without any breakthrough.
It didn’t help him, yet again, that the man he has placed so much faith and so much money in just stood idly by and watched the house burn down – making sure all the while he wouldn’t suffer a scratch.
Mesut Ozil, one of the finest passers of a ball, one of the sharpest eyes for a move, is also one of the flakiest characters in this sport and, against a packed, menacing Atletico defence with a place in the final at stake, he was not the man for the job. Call it old-fashioned, call it English even, but he did not fancy it.
And Martin Keown has seen quite enough of this rubbish from the German who is all-too-prone to these sort of nights on the periphery.
“It seems he picks and chooses his games. He was on the edge of things tonight,” Keown went off on an almighty rant on BT Sport.
“He got lost in the defensive traffic. You can hide a bit in that wide position.
“I think he can demand the ball, he can get on the ball, he can make things tick. As a Vieira would’ve done. Show some drive, show so energy, but he’s on the edge of it. It’s almost like his hands are in the air, ‘look at this group, they aren’t as good as me’.
“Somebody needed to grab him a long time ago, give him a shake and say, ‘we’re trying to get the ball to you. We are working for you but you’re not working for us’.
“I bet he doesn’t play again this season. He’ll have some emotional breakdown and he won’t be able to play at the weekend. I don’t know how many illnesses he’s had this season but he’s not kidding me.”
"He wasn't fit to wear the shirt tonight. He needs to be dug out!" 😡
Martin Keown's take on Mesut Ozil is must-watch 😳pic.twitter.com/nk73hGlfnI
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 4, 2018
