Why Mesut Ozil Is Under Most Pressure for Arsenal Following Loss to Chelsea

Mesut Ozil is often lambasted whenever he is played on the wing. Much of the blame rests with Arsene Wenger for putting him there in the first place, but Ozil often does nothing to redeem the manager's faith in him.

This odd tactic is a recent innovation. Arsenal only just started playing in a 4-1-4-1 formation, and while such a setup is not automatically disastrous (see Arsenal's thorough thrashing of Galatasaray a few days ago), the sheer number of midfielders on the pitch results in someone being shunted to the wing.

Wenger probably adopted the 4-1-4-1 to accommodate the almost embarrassing surfeit of midfield talent at his disposal. If the Gunners still used a 4-3-3, he would have to choose three of Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere, Mikel Arteta, Ozil, Santi Cazorla, Tomas Rosicky, Abou Diaby and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

They're never all fit at once, of course, but that list illustrates just how much emphasis Wenger puts on the midfield as a means of controlling possession and defending through retaining the ball.

The question no Arsenal fan seems able to answer, though, is why Ozil, of all people, is the unlucky one who is forced to toil on the wing.

It is abundantly clear to anyone who saw him play for Real Madrid or the German national team that his natural position as a No. 10. Ozil thrives when he has the freedom to roam without compromising his defense and has the most space to distribute the ball to the forwards.

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"But Germany won the World Cup this summer with Ozil on the wing," some respond. Quite true, but correlation does not imply causation. Joachim Low's problem was actually very similar to Wenger's: So many midfielders that were too good to leave out of the team but not enough space to accommodate them all perfectly.

Ozil wasn't very good in the World Cup either, frequently fading from view while more active (and central) midfielders glued "Die Mannschaft" together.

Wenger's decision to put Ozil on the wing is also interesting because he often leaves Santi Cazorla in the middle. Last season, the Spaniard almost exclusively played on the left wing, while Ozil was granted his preferred position.

Such was the case in Arsenal's 2-0 loss to Chelsea. Cazorla did fairly well on the day before being substituted, but Ozil might as well have not been on the pitch.

His natural languidness does not matter so much when he is deployed as a No. 10 because he is forced to get involved in the play much more frequently. But Ozil just does not take any initiative when on the wing, lazing about, failing to track back and drifting inside, which has the collateral effect of robbing Arsenal of a winger.

Ozil failed to do even the basics well against Chelsea. His passing was shockingly and aberrantly sloppy—he constantly gave the ball away and created almost nothing.

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Importantly, Chelsea's concerted effort to physically intimidate him and muscle him into isolation clearly worked. Jose Mourinho does that sort of thing all the time, so there is no way Ozil could not have anticipated his treatment.

Arsenal need their best players to really step up in big games—every team does. That includes Alexis Sanchez, Ramsey, Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny and Ozil. The latter is especially crucial due to his particular ability to dismember defenses and consequently make the entire attack run smoothly.

We know that he can only do so when he is played centrally. Wenger deserves to be criticized for his failure to do so, and especially when he cannot or will not recognize Ozil's failure and remove him from a game. Quite why Wenger removed the lively Cazorla and Alexis and left Ozil on the pitch for the entire 90 minutes is beyond rational explanation.

But, given Wenger's obduracy, Ozil needs to figure out how to adapt to this unnatural role. He needs to run more, he needs to look a bit more interested in both attack and defense and he needs to be positionally disciplined.

Wenger would do well to pay attention to his own striker, who told Arsenal.com recently that he is not surprised at his flourishing up front—he's a striker, and was played on the wing at Manchester United.

Ozil is a central attacking midfielder, not a winger, and should be deployed accordingly. But Welbeck worked so hard on the wing for United that he became a fan favorite, whereas Ozil merely shrivels.

He needs to show a lot more want-to because his lack thereof makes Arsenal look like they're collectively running with a parachute on.

Follow @charliemelman