FA Cup and Gabriel Injury Offer Arsenal Redemption for Mesut Ozil, Mertesacker

You’d think that players who’ve won the World Cup would have little left to prove. Nevertheless, Arsenal’s German pair of Per Mertesacker and Mesut Ozil have both faced significant criticism this season. In the FA Cup tie with Manchester United, they will have a chance to deliver a riposte to their detractors.

Mertesacker might not even have been due to start the game had new signing Gabriel not succumbed to a hamstring injury against Queens Park Rangers. In the last two fixtures, Arsene Wenger has rotated his three centre-backs, and the indications are that Mertesacker is no longer an automatic first-choice.

However, he responded to his demotion with an outstanding display against Rangers. According to Squawka, Mertesacker made 15 clearances in the course of the game, helping to keep QPR’s direct approach at bay for long periods.

Per Mertesacker clearances vs. QPR | Squawka.com

Up against former Arsenal striker Robin van Persie and regular scourge of the Gunners Wayne Rooney, Mertesacker has a fantastic chance to win back the support of fans and manager alike.

Ozil does not need to prove anything to Wenger, however. After Paul Scholes suggested in his column for The Independent that the playmaker had taken the “easy option” by choosing to join Arsenal, the Gunners boss has leapt to the defence of his record signing.

Christopher Lee/Getty Images

It’s a justified rebuttal. Ozil’s effort levels are greater than many suggest: According to Arsenal.com, since the 5-0 victory against Aston Villa on February 1, the World Cup winner has run a total of 63.24km during matches—more than any other Arsenal player. He certainly doesn’t look like a player shying away from work.

Speaking to the club’s official website, Wenger said:

"

I knew he had a good physical potential, but I did not know how good he was physically. He has a huge physical potential. 

We are all in a job where in every single game we have to prove a point. I believe he has the quality, he puts a lot of effort in to help the team and he works much harder than his style shows.

You can be cheated a little bit by his style of play, because he is fluent, easy, subtle and he does not look like he puts the effort in, but he does.

"

However, discussion of Ozil’s physical attributes is almost a red herring. It’s his technical attributes that made him one of the world’s most acclaimed players, and they too have been in evidence over the past few weeks.

Julian Finney/Getty Images

Against QPR, he produced a number of exquisite touches to leave his markers bewildered. In one particularly glorious first-half instance, he lobbed the ball over the defender before racing on to it to launch a dynamic counter-attack. That piece of impudent skill indicates that there is a confidence to Ozil’s play that was curiously absent for the majority of 2014.

Scholes may come to regret his comments. He may have just inadvertently provided Ozil with the necessary motivation to undo his beloved United. A convincing performance from the German at Old Trafford would surely silence any remaining critics.

James McNicholas is Bleacher Report's lead Arsenal correspondent and is following the club from a London base throughout the 2014-15 season. Follow him on Twitter here.