The Mesut Ozil question

I don't think Ozil was what Arsenal needed and I don't think he particularly fits in. Ozil's signing was a product of the mood of the times, it was a a kind of upmarket panic buy, similar to what United have been doing this season.

Remember the mood at Arsenal in summer 2013, for a long time they had been seen as a selling club. Summer 2013 was going to be the year they 'went big' and reversed that. First the big signing was going to be Higuain, then it was Suarez. Neither came (with hindsight, had Suarez rather than Ozil signed for them last summer, I think Arsenal would have won the title).

So transfer deadline day approaches and Arsenal haven't delivered their big signing, their signal that they are actually a buying club that can attract the major names in the game. The first game of the season they get beat by Villa. The pressure is now at breaking point.

There are two schools of thought in this situation. One is, don't bow to pressure to spend for the sake of spending, only make a signing if it's what you exactly need in a position that needs addressing. The other is that you never get anywhere by taking risks, sometimes you need to aim big and take a bit of a punt on uncertainty.

Usually Arsene Wenger is from school one but on this occasion he was from school two and the irony is a very un-Wenger like decision has cost Arsenal a lot of money. He's not a complete flop but he is no way worth the £42.5m that was spent. I am starting to wonder whether in about 12 to 18 months we will see Ozil leave Arsenal for about £30m. He will still be able to command a big fee in Germany or Spain where he is very highly rated, but they won't get their money back on him. They paid over the odds because they were pressed to make a big signing on deadline day, just like United have paid over the odds this time around.

However looking at the bigger picture I think Arsenal fans will probably not want to criticise Wenger too much for his decision to sign Ozil. The second school of thought above, that sometimes you need to aim big and take a bit of a punt means you will sometimes get things wrong or 'not quite right'. Alex Ferguson was a classic exponent of this: look at the huge fees he laid down for Veron and Berbatov, who were Ozil-like signings. Also I'm sure Arsenal fans have had a good laugh at Chelsea over the years for the likes of Shevchenko and Torres but they would rather have won Chelsea's trophies over that time.

The Ozil signing did send the signal out that Arsenal can now punch at the top in terms of attracting top players, because whatever his patchy form for Arsenal, Ozil is still regarded as one of the biggest names in the game. Arsenal took another punt on a big signing this year in Sanchez who looks like he is going to be one of the best signings Arsenal have made in a long time.

The real regret for Arsenal comes in the context of Fabregas. Had Arsenal not got Ozil, I reckon they would have taken Fabregas back and we all know who the better player in the Premier League is. Wenger got criticised for a decision to sell RVP to United deciding where the title went that season, I think he decided where the title will go this season when he let Fabregas join Chelsea.

Thing is though, I think that because of his lack of ability to cover enough of the pitch in the big games, Jack and Rambo are actually the better options through the centre. It is that lack of workrate/pitch coverage that makes him too one-dimensional through the centre when we are playing the likes of City. It is not like Spain where you can just dawdle around, arguably.

Lol my friend has and she was going on about how pretty the women are.

Can confirm.