Arsenal mid-season awards: Hits and Flops

#1 Worst: Mesut Ozil

Ozil has failed to conjure magic on a regular basis

The German had a turbulent summer. After being entrusted with carrying his country’s hopes at the World Cup, Ozil wasn’t up to scratch in Russia and later found himself caught in the center of a racism storm.

Unfortunately, the bad treatment by the German FA seems to have taken a toll on Ozil as he has looked mentally jaded this campaign. At the start of the season, Emery earmarked him as one of the captains for the season yet every passing match has told us that the Spaniard hardly trusts the German in crunch situations.

Though the uncertainty over Ozil’s future has played a part in his wretched form, the German has enough talent to put those rumors to bed with sheer quality on the pitch.

Yet, something of that sort has failed to transpire this season.

When Ozil conjured magic against Leicester in October, many believed that he had turned a corner. Unfortunately, the step forward was followed by several steps in the opposite direction, meaning that the German now has a fight on his hands to regain his manager’s faith.

There aren’t many (if any) in the Arsenal dressing room who can rival Ozil’s vision or inventiveness. However, the German’s lackadaisical attitude has clearly offset the other strong facets of his game.