Mikel Arteta Says Mesut Ozil Needs to 'Make the Difference Every Single Game'

Mikel Arteta has called on Mesut Ozil to deliver more end product, despite admitting Arsenal's highest earner has played better in recent matches.

Arteta, who took charge in late December, has outlined exactly why Ozil remains so important to his plans, per FourFourTwo: "The demands that we have to put on him are to make the difference every single game. To do that he needs the right structure and players around him to help him to do that."

While Arteta is aware of the need for the right supporting cast to help free Ozil's talents, he still wants more: "I think he could have had more assists and probably more goals in the games he has played under me which has been a little bit unlucky but overall I think that his performance has improved a lot."

It's not an unreasonable demand since Ozil has yet to assist or find the net through five league games since Arteta took the job. The lack of output has seen him come in for criticism from former Arsenal midfielder Ray Parlour.

Ozil is 103rd when it comes to overall goal contributions in the last two years, according to Jeremy Wilson of the Telegraph. His meagre numbers don't tally with the £350,000 he earns each week since signing a bumper new deal back in January 2018.

Parlour told the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast (h/t TalkSport's Joe Moore): "He's got support from the fans, but his stats aren't great. If you're player of that calibre, you've got to up your stats."

Ozil's numbers make for dismal reading, but Parlour did concede he is improving on Arteta's watch. It's a notion Gunners centre-back Shkodran Mustafi agrees with.

The 27-year-old said Arteta's desire for Arsenal to play a more expansive and attractive game has Ozil enjoying himself, per Simon Collings of the London Evening Standard.

Ozil expressed the same sentiment to the Arsenal matchday programme ahead of Saturday's 1-1 draw with Sheffield United (h/t Dan Mountney of the Islington Gazette):

The idea Ozil has improved without the numbers to show for it mirrors Arsenal's so-far stunted progress under Arteta. He's won just one of five league games, drawing three and losing one, despite performances, discipline and work-rate being better than they were under predecessors Unai Emery and Freddie Ljungberg.

A key part of Arteta's focus has been to get Arsenal pressing higher up the pitch and chasing the ball with more intensity and coordination. It's yielded greater industry and application from the notoriously languid Ozil.

While renewed energy is welcome, Arsenal's mercurial No. 10 is a player defined more by what he does on the ball than off it. Ozil's flair and vision are essential for the more artful style of play Arteta wants.

Finding ways to free those qualities has proved tricky, even though Arteta has been putting a strong base behind Ozil. Lucas Torreira and Granit Xhaka have offered a platform as a burgeoning partnership anchoring central midfield.

Ozil may have greater freedom to express himself, but he'd also benefit from having more players of similar technical ability around him. Unfortunately for Arteta, there is a shortage of those since Santi Cazorla, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Alex Iwobi and Henrikh Mkhitaryan all left the club during Emery's ill-fated tenure.

Arteta needs a skilled playmaker like Real Madrid loanee Dani Ceballos to get back to full fitness and contribute. Adding some more natural craft to the engine room during the January transfer window would also help Ozil meet Arteta's expectations.