Garth Crooks has slammed Arsenal supporters for treating Mesut Ozil as their ‘whipping boy’, despite him being one of their ‘best players’
The former Spurs striker believes fans get on Ozil’s back too easily and that the Germany international is key to the Gunners title chances along with Alexandre Lacazette and Alexis Sanchez.
Arsene Wenger deployed his AOL trio for the first time in the Premier League against Everton, with the Gunners pulling off a 5-2 win and Crooks is certain they are Arsenal’s only hope of having a good season.
And he believes fans need to lay off Ozil and get behind the playmaker.
‘If this is what happens when Alexandre Lacazette, Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez are all on the pitch at the same time for Arsenal, then Arsene Wenger has to do whatever it takes to protect them,’ Crooks told the BBC.
‘Sunday’s game at Everton was the first time that all three have started for Arsenal and it resulted in five goals and a big win.
‘However, what I can’t understand is why Ozil has become Arsenal’s whipping boy over the years? I know he can be temperamental and is prone to sulk but he is not the first player to behave in this way and he certainly won’t be the last.
‘The Germany international seemed to carry the can for Arsenal’s defeat at Watford recently and it even prompted a suggestion from one pundit that Ozil’s performance may signal the end of his career at Arsenal. At this point I have to ask myself, ‘how can a player of Ozil’s obvious class be so easily dismissed?’
‘I have always been of the opinion that the best teams tend to have the best players and usually fans want to keep them. So why does Ozil get such a bad rap from some Arsenal supporters?
‘He was outstanding against Everton and, while his critics will say you have to wait too long to see a top-class performance from him, I would respond that when he does perform it’s almost certainly worth the wait. What is clear is that if Arsenal start dispensing with players like Ozil then they can forget about titles.’
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