Arsene Wenger cannot explain Mesut Ozil's struggles ahead of Bayern Munich Champions League tie

1/27
James Benge13 February 2017

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admits he is at a loss to explain Mesut Ozil’s decline in form over recent months.

The 28-year-old was anonymous for the majority of Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Hull on Saturday, his only contributions of note being two miscued shots and a heavy touch when slipped in behind the visitors’ defence by Alexis Sanchez.

At full-time a visibly disappointed Ozil made straight for the tunnel as his team-mates embraced and saluted the fans.

Ozil has not scored since December 10 and faces another match against Bayern Munich, against whom he had one of his first performances in an Arsenal shirt in 2014, on Wednesday.

Wenger admitted that his record signing was not heading into the European tie at anywhere near his best form.

“I felt he was not completely confident technically today,” Wenger said. “I completely agree with you.

“That's a problem because you think he can deliver something special. It's true that technically he did things today that he is not used to doing.

“I don't know. It can happen. I can't think of a specific reason. I had a chat with him yesterday (Friday). He looked alright.”

Asked whether Ozil needed a big moment to get back to his best form Wenger agreed, adding: “Maybe it's time for him to score a goal again. He needs to find confidence again.

“He misses chances that don't look unfeasible for him (to score).”

A visit to the Allianz Arena could offer Ozil the chance to remind Arsenal of his worth, though the German international’s record against the Bundesliga champions is unquestionably mixed.

In the 2014 Champions League round of 16 first leg Ozil missed a penalty at 0-0 and greatly struggled in the aftermath as Bayern went on to win 2-0.

Ozil gained a semblance of redemption the following year, scoring the second goal in a famous 2-0 win over Pep Guardiola’s side at the Emirates.

Having topped their group Arsenal do at least have the benefit of playing their second leg tie on home soil and Wenger has urged his side to ensure they return from Munich on Wednesday with the tie still there to be won, a feat that has proven beyond the Gunners in recent years.

“We had bad experiences against them,” Wenger said. “It’s a good opportunity; we have as well already won there.

“We play the first game away from home – so it’s important that we protect as well the second game.

“I feel to have a chance to qualify in the second leg will be very important. So we must go there, not hide, but defend well as a team.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in