Mesut Özil shows his class as Arsenal hit five past Bournemouth
At times like this all seems swell in Mesut Özil’s world. Under the gleam of the lights, finding space and time on a football pitch, his talent unfurled again. Arsenal’s enigmatic playmaker, who has looked like Unai Emery’s type all too infrequently during this problematic season, illuminated this match with an exhibition of golden touches.
Yes, there is the caveat that Bournemouth are on a painful losing run away from home. It’s pretty unlikely he will be trusted with the intensity of Tottenham away on Saturday but even Emery must have gone home scratching his head at how the player who has been his biggest battle this season could also look like such a blessing.
Özil scored, assisted, and generally shone. As did another of Arsenal’s erratic creators, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, whose passing and finishing was also on song. All in all Arsenal seized the opportunity to express themselves against a team who shared their trait for looking like they could concede a chance at any time – only more so. With a testing week coming up with matches against Tottenham, Rennes and Manchester United, this booster came at a convenient time. Emery spoke afterwards about his desire to show “a complete match” at the Emirates for a while, and this one delivered that.
Emery was reluctant to wax lyrically about the scintillating performances of Özil and Mkhitaryan. He responded to the question as to whether they made themselves hard to drop with the play-safe generalisations he prefers. “I am going to watch this match for the analysis. And I am going to watch Tottenham. Then I will decide our plan against them. We need big commitment from every player to help us.”
There wasn’t much of a deadlock for Arsenal to unpick and they were ahead in the fourth minute when Özil was found in such ample space that even a man of his fondness for assists could not turn down the invitation to shoot. He dinked the ball with his heel and a hint of backspin and it floated sweetly. Özil was engulfed in a group hug.
The attacking combinations created a second goal which was beautiful in its simplicity. Mkhitaryan captured the ball and slid the ball to Özil, whose return pass was guided to land so Mkhitaryan did not have to break stride to score. Özil’s name rang freely around the Emirates.
But Bournemouth rallied and found a route back into the game, showing determination to claw back a goal. Dan Gosling’s pressing as the home team tried to play out from the back reaped its reward. The midfielder snaffled the ball off Matteo Guendouzi, who was badly punished for dallying, and centred for Lys Mousset to tap home.
After that encouragement, Eddie Howe’s frustration was laid bare as he watched his team shudder at the beginning of the second half just as they had the first. Arsenal’s cushion was restored early in the second half as Mkhitaryan drove in a cross and Laurent Koscielny’s deflected shot bounced off the post too awkwardly for Artur Boruc.
Back came Bournemouth through the energetic Fraser, and the Scot was kept out with a solid save from Bernd Leno, before Gosling whacked a dipping shot against the crossbar. But Arsenal eased further in front when Mkhitaryan’s pass encouraged PierreEmerick Aubameyang to switch on the afterburners. The striker jinked past the onrushing Boruc and steered in unerringly. Substitute Alex Lacazette iced the cake with a superb free-kick.
Bournemouth are stuck in a rut away from home and Howe’s disappointment was obvious. “We have to be very clear that we can play a lot better than that. We must not kid ourselves that today was acceptable. Obviously we made mistakes that contributed to our own downfall. A lot of things hurt us. We need to perform better. We need to make that change ourselves. We need to give everything.”
Their next away game, at Huddersfield, is as good an opportunity as any to turn the tide.
For Emery the next stop is the north-London derby and the incentive to try to get to within a point of Tottenham. “It is,” he mused, “a huge motivation.”