Once again Mesut Özil looked across to the side of the pitch and saw his number was up. At Stamford Bridge two weeks ago it felt like a humiliation, the German hauled off by Unai Emery with 22 minutes of a finely poised contest remaining and having to endure ironic cheers from the home supporters on the back of an ineffective display.
This time, on a warm afternoon in the Welsh capital, it was different. Özil was again substituted but with only six minutes left of a game Arsenal were winning and in which this most enigmatic of figures suggested he does have a future at this club, with this manager, after all.
The game was an hour old and drifting towards a 1-1 draw when Özil decided to take matters into his own hands. Having been a peripheral figure, he was suddenly getting on the ball and stitching together Arsenal’s forward momentum. The burst of inspiration unsettled Cardiff and then, on 62 minutes, came the killer moment.
Finding himself just inside the opposition half, Özil waited for the precise moment to send the ball towards the feet of Alexandre Lacazette, who in turn spun a pass into the path of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who in turn arrowed a shot into the net. Pass, pass, shot and 2-1 to Arsenal in the blink of an eye.
Aubameyang’s finish was excellent, as was Lacazette’s assist in a contest decided by the latter’s thumping late drive, but the contribution of Özil should not be underestimated. It was he who quickened the tempo, he who moved around players in blue and he who saw a picture in his mind, one that would, and did, lead to a goal.
For more read the full of article at The Guardian
