Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger’s decision to keep Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil has backfired

THE JAMES OLLEY COLUMN
Uncertain futures | Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez
Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
James Olley20 December 2017

When Arsene Wenger espoused in pre-season the sporting benefits of taking a huge financial risk on the futures of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, the Arsenal manager cannot have imagined that his team would sit outside the top four with Christmas less than a week away.

The Gunners turned down £60million from Manchester City for Sanchez on deadline day, initially due to a botched 11th-hour attempt to prise Thomas Lemar from Monaco, but also in the belief he remained capable of sparking a title challenge.

Sanchez has scored four Premier League goals this season. His influence is also measured in other ways, of course, but by this stage last term, the Chilean, who turned 29 yesterday, had netted 12.

Ozil had fewer serious suitors in the summer, but a buyer would have been found had Arsenal dropped their asking price - and, in any case, the prevailing view was that the German’s contribution on the field would offset any immediate monetary gain.

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There was also the hope, further advanced than with Sanchez, that Ozil could even be persuaded to sign a new deal. He provided a reminder of his wondrous talent with a moment of class to secure victory over Newcastle last weekend and he has undoubtedly been one of the team’s most influential performers in recent weeks.

That sumptuous volley was only Ozil’s third League goal of the campaign - he had five by this time last year - but his true worth is usually measured in assists: only Kevin De Bruyne, Leroy Sane, David Silva and Aaron Ramsey have more than Ozil’s five to date.

Furthermore, despite the plaudits De Bruyne has rightly earned at the heart of City’s stunning campaign to date, Ozil has created more chances from open play than any other player in the division, leading Wenger to agree with the assessment put to him last week that he is currently in the best form of his Arsenal career.

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Ozil is often depicted as yin to Sanchez’s yang. The pair are inextricably linked: they are the club’s best players, reaching a level no others can match on their day; their contract negotiations are often discussed together in public; and the loss of either is painted as a huge blow to a manager currently losing the fight to prove that his best days are behind him.

Wenger may have ceded ground behind the scenes as a support staff is appointed around him, master-minded by CEO Ivan Gazidis, but the final decision on transfers still rests with the manger. “Ivan has nothing to do with buying players,” said Wenger last month, in a pointed assertion of his authority.

It is well documented that Wenger is scrupulous with Arsenal’s finances and focused almost to the point of obsession on the concept of value, but the decision to keep both Sanchez and Ozil was predicated upon his belief that the pair would give him the best chance of justifying his own new contract.

Arsenal may have reached the EFL Cup semi-finals after beating West Ham last night but with no Champions League football, the primary indicator of success for Wenger is their League position.

To sit 19 points behind leaders City is more of a testament to the phenomenal consistency of Pep Guardiola’s side. But to be eight behind Manchester United, five behind Chelsea and one adrift of Friday’s visitors Liverpool is a consequence of Arsenal’s deficiencies, which Sanchez and Ozil have thus far failed to mask.

Strengthening City by selling them Sanchez may have seemed foolhardy in August - and the history of players departing up the M6 in recent years would only reinforce that feeling - but it feels almost irrelevant now.

The question really becomes this: would Sanchez be fully committed to a top-four scrap in a World Cup year, knowing he was leaving for nothing in six months, or would, say £30m-£40m be better reinvested elsewhere in the squad? In addition, only Ozil is performing well enough now to put himself in the shop window for January.

The knock-on effect of indulging the pair has been profound on other players, of lesser ability admittedly, who are desperate to stay. Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott are prime examples. Danny Welbeck, Alex Iwobi and Olivier Giroud have also had reduced game-time as a result.

If it was unclear whether keeping both Sanchez and Ozil was of net gain to Arsenal in the summer, it is even more doubtful now.