Big effort from the writer to actually throw in a few positive comments. Is english football can ever understand ozil? Yes he didn't finish all the games, but he forgets that he's talking about the assist king of last 4 years. I can only blame him (actually his father agent) for leaving Madrid, he would have been the Europe's star this year, no doubt he would have stacked a pile of assists as well. There is so much u can do with giroud as striker!
I would actually argue that Madrid was able to achieve its fluidity because Özil's departure. Nothing against the player but I think moving Di Maria centrally to run at defenders instead of Mesut sitting back and picking out passes really opened the team up. In retrospect it was the absolute right decision for Madrid to let him go. Even if he was great. They just never learned to optimize him. Look at Isco even and how marginalized he is and then asked to perform multiple roles. He might eventually be integrated better but Mesut would probably not have gotten as much time in Ancelotti's system either. And all sorts of pressure, media outbursts could have occurred then.
I personally can't stand Mourinho - but his recent comments on Ozil are interesting. Nothing new.... but I agree with them. ‘I think it's hard to criticize him, because Özil is Özil,' said Mourinho. 'If you were expecting Özil to be super aggressive and to be running miles and miles from side to side and to show great enthusiasm and aggressiveness, this is not Mesut. If you are waiting for somebody where every time he touches the ball, the ball smiles. Every time he makes a pass, the ball goes with the right direction, the right speed, the right intensity, this is Özil.' Mourinho added: 'At the same time, I learned with him because we were together for quite a long time, that he's a very sensitive boy. He needs confidence. He needs trust. He needs to feel that people is with him. When he's on the pitch, every time he touches the ball, the ball goes beautiful. And he’ll always finds the right man on the right place. So, sometimes, you don't see him, sometimes he doesn't go to screen many, many times. But when he goes he is a special player.'
Here's a clip of Low with Mesut after he was subbed. Muller and Khedira both also consoled him during his substitution. IMO, Mesut needs to be mentally stronger to become one of the best players in the world. Maybe it will come as he matures.
I don't know if I was a coach that I could baby a player like that... At some point you have to man up.... Stand up and be accounted for..
He's an artist though and such personalities tend to be special. He can be key in tomorrows heat with a single pass.
Amazing how so much focus on Özil as you'd be surprised how many players get or need treatment like this? Media picks and chooses who to write about but this is widely spread.
Players need to be taken aside all the time and spoken too privately. When players receive injuries, they receive special treatment. Psychologists are on stand by for players who suffer mental strain when not in form or recover from injury. Some more than others and obviously the bigger name, the more in the headlines you'll be. Someone like David Bentley won't make those headlines as such although he is similar case. Everyone from Jonatan Reis to Cassano fall into the same boat. We don't hear stories of players breaking down and crying, staying in their rooms playing video games rather than coming to training because all we see is them smiling at appearances and giving the typically maligned post-match interviews we can recite in our sleep. I have a lot of friends and know people who could be considered insiders. Not all at major clubs but a range of small to medium big clubs and the anecdotes of players needing "individual" treatment are extremely common.
I'd say Sahin would be an example, but that might be more of a guy who simply benefited from Klopp's system, and failed elsewhere.
The problem with players like Özil is that you can't rely on them if things don't go your way and that's a major problem and it's certainly not true that all "football artists" suffer this problem (look at Götze's work rate). It is actually often the difference between very good and great players => who is able to handle all the pressure, expectations etc. There is a reason why even Löw moved him to the wings and that other coaches like Mourinho and Wenger have also done it. In the center of the pitch you need reliable players in the modern game at the highest level and Özil still doesn't have that reliability and some magic moments will never compensate for it in the long run. It is an area in which Özil simply has to improve to be really counted among the football greats.
Excellent example. All mental there. Özil also suffered from being nurtured as a specialized player and made into THE key player in every set up he was in at the time he was developing his base abilities. He was not responsible for taking on games but for helping everyone else around him do that. It "damaged" him so to speak. He didn't know anything else. Löw and Mourinho are as much to blame but that opens up another debate which should be had in this conversation. Fortunately it's not too late for Özil to grow out of it. We've already seen how well he coped in different shapes under Arsenal and in little time now with Germany recently.
I think you are going a little overboard with your criticism. Yes, Mesut is not as reliable on the ball as someone like Kroos or Lahm, but that's not his job. He is the creator. And he's as reliable as anyone to make the key pass in any game.
Now looking back on it, do you think it would have been wiser for Mesut to stay at Bremen for another year or two before he moved to Madrid? He would have been the clear key player and perhaps would have developed all parts of his skillset. Then again, it's impossible to say no to Madrid as a 21 year old, and he's certainly improved tactically under Mourinho.
Not really. He was ready back then. Because it started with Löw it probably would have continued. Unless he went to Barcelona which would have nurtured him the way I think would be best for him but that was impossible then as they didn't really need him.