Arsenal Manager Arsene Wenger is delighted with Mesut Ozil’s return to form in the central midfield role and lauds his instant understanding with Danny Welbeck, but says the German could still be deployed elsewhere over the course of the season.
Ozil and Welbeck provided an assist each for each other to scored two of Arsenal’s three goals at Aston Villa last weekend.
“He (Ozil) played very well and had a good understanding with Danny Welbeck,” said Wenger in his pre-game press conference ahead of Saturday’s game against Tottenham Hotspur.
“It was a good partnership because they gave each other balls to score. It is tempting to keep Ozil in that central role but I maintain again that he will play where he is needed for the balance of the team and that can change game by game.”
The duo were missing in the midweek as Wenger fielded a much-changed side against Southampton in the third round of the Capital One Cup, eventually losing out of the championship by a 2-1 final scoreline.
Danny Welbeck, Mesut Ozil, Kieran Gibbs and Aaron ramsey Celebrates Arsenal’s Goal At Aston Villa. Image: Getty.
“It was a disappointment to go out against Southampton but we could be a completely different team because I changed 10 players from the Villa game,” he said. “We are more in our minds on the back of the Villa game and we want to do well – but we wanted as well to go through in the Capital One Cup but Southampton played very well. You have to consider them as being one of the top teams this season in the Premier League.
“It’s difficult for the players who do not have a lot of competition to come in and be at their best. You’re always tempted to be a bit harsh on the judgement of the players who lack a bit of continuity in the competition. You have more look at the young players and, on that front, I believe that players like Isaac Hayden and Hector Bellerin have shown that they have the quality to be here and I believe overall David Ospina had a good game as well.”
The French boss also dropped central defenders Kieran Gibbs and Per Mertesacker to the bench in the League Cup loss, but will name them in his squad for the all-important north London derby against Spurs.
Injuries to Nacho Monreal, Olivier Giroud, Theo Walcott and Mathieu Debuchy has thinned the coach’s options is key positions, but will be looking to have Mathieu Flamini back in the midfield on Saturday.
Arsenal face a couple of top of the bill fixtures in the coming week, starting with Wednesday’s Champions League home tie with Turkish giants Galatasaray, followed by the trip to Premier League leaders Chelsea next weekend.
Asked if he would be rotating players, Wenger replied: “Not really at the moment, I have my eye on the next game because that’s a massive game and it conditions a little bit our confidence to go into other games. It’s true that it’s a very big week for us, so let’s start it well.”
Mauricio Pochettino’s side have their worst start to a league season after five matches since 2008-09, having recorded just seven points- six of them coming from London derbies (win over West Ham and Tottenham).
The White Hart Lane outfit have taken only one point since their 3-0 home loss to Liverpool on 31 August and are presently ranked 9th on the standings.
But Wenger, whose side is placed five more places ahead of the ‘Lilly Whites’, would rather not read too much into their opponent’s statistic, saying: “It’s too early to judge a team but Tottenham will benefit from the stability they will have this season. I’m always a fan of stability because the manager carries the values of a club better than anyone else.
“We are playing at home and we want to win our home games. Tottenham have less new players than this time last year and have a quality manager (Mauricio Pochettino) – he has shown that at Southampton.
“These (derby) games are important moments in the season. Over the years Tottenham have always had a good team and for us to be on top of them means we can fight for the top of the league.”
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