Breaking: Mesut Özil signs for Arsenal in a record-breaking deal with one hour left in the summer window. An official statement was released by both the player and Arsenal.com earlier today. The German international is said to have cost the Gunners anywhere between 40-50m pounds, smashing the club's transfer record, previously held by flop Andrei Arshavin.
Özil certainly adds depth to a threadbare Arsenal outfit, but depth in the right area? Arsenal require numbers in defence and at the pinnacle of attack, so why buy a player in the Gunners most crowded area of the pitch? Arsenal already have Santi Cazorla, a player perfectly engineered to play just behind the strikers, where Özil will likely end up. His transfer would mean Cazorla shifts to the left flank whilst two of Wilshere, Ramsey Arteta and Rosicky make up the midfield each week. This record deal seems wasteful and, although a world class player, a panic buy. You wonder whether Wenger had the money burning a hole in his pocket and used another German internationals, Lukas Podolski, injury as an excuse to splash the cash.
There is no doubt that Özil will improve the squad as a whole, but Santi Cazorla. The little Spaniard was by far Arsenal's best player last season and has also consistently performed in recent weeks, when predominantly playing down the middle. Whilst played a portion of last season on the left flank, he never possessed the same threat as he did down the middle, constantly drifting and cutting inside, leaving a gaping hole for the opposition full back to run rampant.
Ultimately, the acquisition of Mesut Özil will improve the team, adding creativity and counter attacking ability to help Arsenal place in the top four. But he comes at a cost, and not just 40m, a player of his quality will grant him access to any position he wants to play and thus, will halt the development of Cazorla, Wilshere and Ramsey.
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