Arsenal: Mesut Ozil’s absence could be Aaron Ramsey’s gain

It seems likely that Mesut Ozil will miss today’s match against West Ham United, but Arsenal needn’t worry.

Mesut Ozil has suffered a shaky start to his Premier League season, the same can be said for a large number of his Arsenal colleagues. However, playing against West Ham United would have been the ideal chance for him to get back on track.

But, perhaps inevitably, he looks set to be out of action through ‘illness’, although many Arsenal fans think they know the real reason behind his absence. It’s not something they aren’t used to, as this has been an ongoing occurrence over the last year.

Not to panic, though.

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From a creative standpoint, Arsenal needn’t worry as much as they would have this time last season. They have Henrikh Mkhitaryan now, and the Armenian is in fine form following from his match against Chelsea. The attacker likes to use his instinctive thinking to pick out the pass, something which Mesut Ozil prefers to take the time to perfect.

However, it also opens the gate for Aaron Ramsey to play more advanced. It’s in these advanced positions which the Welshman excels, often picking out space. This will be pivotal against West Ham United, as their defense has proven to be malleable over the years.

While play won’t run directly through Ramsey, he has the ability to make things tick with his work off the ball. This will give Arsenal a new dynamic to which they show with Mesut Ozil – which is always healthy.

Unai Emery is still getting to grips with his squad and how he can implement his philosophy, so Ozil’s absence could be a blessing in disguise.

Don’t be fooled though, Ozil is still key.

All this is well and good, but we all know Ozil is still a key player to Arsenal. Perhaps the most important player, as most of the attacking play runs through him. This is why it’s so frustrating to see him missing many games.

He likes to drop deeper nowadays in order to pick up possession. He then relies on his quick one touch passing to drive the team forward, there he likes to finish the move. He can spot runners with his vision, and more often than not, comes up with the tasteful ball.

It will just be a question of whether or not the strikers will finish his moves this season. With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette in contention for the goals, I don’t see why not.

Do you think Arsenal can survive without Mesut Ozil in this match?