Mesut Özil: Time to Move Ön?

[HBL]

A sulky Özil for the start of next season. Brilliant stuff.

 

[blaze_of_glory]

Chances created, according to Opta's website, is defined as "assists plus Key passes" where a Key Pass is "the final pass or pass-cum-shot leading to the recipient of the ball having an attempt at goal without scoring". So basically, any pass that leads to a shot is considered a chance created.
If Elneny passes the ball sideways to Xhaka who then shoots from 40 meters it is a chance created by Elneny. It's a bit lazy statistic, especially if to use it after one game, but Twitter like that sort of things. Iirc somebody posted that only Messi had more "chances created" than Lucas Perez in La Liga last season. There are some other more reliable and complex football stats than "chances created" to highlight somebody's playmaker skills.

Yes but if a player consistently has high chances created, like Özil always does, it is more than reasonable to conclude that he is generally passing the ball into situations where the receiving player feels they have a good chance of scoring. Especially in teams like Arsenal and Germany where guys don't just shoot for fun.

 

[blaze_of_glory]

Also the fact that Özil also has a huge number of assists should really end the consternation over his chances created stats.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

The truth always lies somewhere in the middle 7 key chances doesn't mean that they were all clear cut but at the same time it doesn't mean that they are all simple passes leading to random pot shots from the Germans. Though I personally can't jump to any conclusions as I haven't watched the game.

 

[<<reed>>]

Yes but if a player consistently has high chances created, like Özil always does, it is more than reasonable to conclude that he is generally passing the ball into situations where the receiving player feels they have a good chance of scoring. Especially in teams like Arsenal and Germany where guys don't just shoot for fun.

Agree, the players who have the most "chances created" over a season are usually great playmakers, I just said that in one game those stats could be misleading. I just don't like tweets like "Özil created 7 chances he was the best player on the pitch!!!1111", he created maybe 2 good chances and wasn't any better than most of the German players.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

Özil should get used to this though, Messi was criticised for Argentina's poor showings in the first few games despite him trying to create stuff and being let down by a poor team being poorly managed. When you're in the elite level you should be used to being made the scapegoat. Fact is he's already helped this generation win a world cup, their first for 24 years and their first as a united Germany. Football's a team game, again using the Messi example look back at the Iceland game the amount of stuff he was trying that didn't come off because people weren't on the same wavelength as him. Özil creating plenty of chances in the first game vs Mexico and based on the stats created a few in this game too, that's what your playmaker is supposed to do, it's hardly his fault his teammates can't finish off the chances.

It's also not Özil's fault that Low has a weird obsession with Muller who should be nowhere near the starting XI now and Gomez too as an automatic sub when chasing a game. Then refused to take Sane a guy who runs in behind and is absolutely suited to Özil and above all else offers a threat in behind with blistering pace to stretch defences off the back of an excellent season. Low relied on too much off the old guard long after they should have been dropped, even Khedira starting in the first game didn't look anywhere near the same as 4 years ago.

I'd almost suggest Özil retire from international football, but I think he'll go again for the Euros because that's just the type of guy he is, I think there's a huge part of him that is desperate to win the German fanbase over. Perhaps in 10-15 years time when he's long retired they may look back and appreciate the rare generational talent that they got to witness in the flesh and be thankful for his contribution to German football.

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

Best player in the league! We are so lucky to have him! Next season he will be creating 10 chances per game!

 

[Wryer]

I watched the entire game, and I thought Özil was the only one creating openings. He even put one on the plate for Hummels.

I don't rate him as highly as most, but its clearly the Germans are looking for someone to blame.

As it has been the case all along, his body language makes him the easiest target.

My worry is he takes a long time to get over setbacks and it's going to eat into him when the season starts.

 

[CurryFlavoured]

Key passes are a crap stat. Özil will 99 times out of 100 favour a pass over a shot which is why he ends up with umpteen key passes. Last night the ball sat up perfectly for him outside the box but he laid it off 5 yards to Kroos instead, who blazed over from 30ish yards. That's a key pass, even though it was a basic pass to a player who wasn't even in a dangerous scoring position.

Özil is an excellent creator which we all know but that stat is garbage and gets inflated by Özil's hesitancy to shoot.

 

[razörist]

Key passes are a crap stat. Özil will 99 times out of 100 favour a pass over a shot which is why he ends up with umpteen key passes. Last night the ball sat up perfectly for him outside the box but he laid it off 5 yards to Kroos instead, who blazed over from 30ish yards. That's a key pass, even though it was a basic pass to a player who wasn't even in a dangerous scoring position.

Özil is an excellent creator which we all know but that stat is garbage and gets inflated by Özil's hesitancy to shoot.

Jep jep, true. The stat is not perfect. But did you guys actually watch the game or? I’m pretty sure there were some other moments that were clear-cut, but maybe its just me, using my eyes and my memory that sees and remembers those moments. Though in my imagination I saw Aubameyang and Lacazette finish them. Can’t wait for the season to start.

 

[razörist]

Kroos probably played the worst three games in a row of his career, even toe-poked the ball to the South-Korean attacker for the 1-0. But he scored a clutch free kick in the second and that is what will be remembered. If the Germans were objective they wouldn’t attack Mesut like they do, lots of players did way worse than him.

 

[CurryFlavoured]

Jep jep, true. The stat is not perfect. But did you guys actually watch the game or? I’m pretty sure there were some other moments that were clear-cut, but maybe its just me, using my eyes and my memory that sees and remembers those moments. Though in my imagination I saw Aubameyang and Lacazette finish them. Can’t wait for the season to start.

I'm not digging Özil's performance, but I feel like regardless of whether he's great, average or crap you hear the same thing about key passes, when it's a terribly flawed stat.

I only watched highlights but it looked like he influenced the game well. Two excellent crosses for Hummels and Werner that might have gone in on another day.

 

[Stannis]

Özil was was the best of a crap bunch.

It’s just become fashionable to hate on him excessively

 

[razörist]

I'm not digging Özil's performance, but I feel like regardless of whether he's great, average or crap you hear the same thing about key passes, when it's a terribly flawed stat.

I only watched highlights but it looked like he influenced the game well. Two excellent crosses for Hummels and Werner that might have gone in on another day.

Didn’t even watch the game but has an opinion of course. Anything goes in the Mesut thread I guess.

 

[wigner]

I watched the second half. The fact that so many chances fell to Hummels, a defender tells you the state of Germany's strike force. I didn't see anybody doing anything except for Özil.

Özil seems like the laziest passer, always passing, when he could run or shoot. But, in retrospect, most of his passes are the correct risk minimizing, reward maximizing passes. It's weird. He's like a maximin solver.

Germany were great before because Mueller and their other strikers were monsters. Take that away and the awareness that such ability doesn't exist anymore, and you get the current Germany.

 

[CurryFlavoured]

Didn’t even watch the game but has an opinion of course. Anything goes in the Mesut thread I guess.

Huh? I didn't even rate his performance, other than saying he created two good chances. I'm talking about giving too much weight to a stat. Sounds like you're the one with a weird, defensive agenda.

 

[Jack_mack50]

Chances created, according to Opta's website, is defined as "assists plus Key passes" where a Key Pass is "the final pass or pass-cum-shot leading to the recipient of the ball having an attempt at goal without scoring". So basically, any pass that leads to a shot is considered a chance created.
If Elneny passes the ball sideways to Xhaka who then shoots from 40 meters it is a chance created by Elneny. It's a bit lazy statistic, especially if to use it after one game, but Twitter like that sort of things. Iirc somebody posted that only Messi had more "chances created" than Lucas Perez in La Liga last season. There are some other more reliable and complex football stats than "chances created" to highlight somebody's playmaker skills.

 

[Flying Okapis]

Your first ever post just to highlight the words 'cum-shot'

 

[Lidl_Reed]

I'm not going to go by stats.

I'm going by what I saw.

Özil created two chances that should have been goals. Hummels and Werner missed clear cut chances, one from a beautiful dribble and cross for Werner, and the other from a great deep cross for Hummels. 7 chances created or whatever is one thing, but two of those chances were so good that they should have been goals.

He also took the safe option a bit too many times early on, but overall, I can't see how you'd blame him.

 

[Tosker]

he's always blamed in the UK because he's Arsenal's highest paid player, but was loved in Germany

the business with Erdogan seems to have killed that, unfortunately, but once home and back in training he'll feel better, I expect - and he'll get loads of positive attention on tour pre-season, as long as he participates fully