Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil and Bayern Munich’s Thomas Muller could play similar roles this evening.
Mesut Ozil has a huge role to play for Arsenal this evening if they are going to take an advantage back to the Allianz Arena with them for the second leg against Bayern Munich.
Bayern’s Thomas Muller has a very similar role to Ozil for the German and European champions so we thought we’d take a look at how they square up against each other across a few key statistical areas ahead of the match.
Goals
| Player | Club | Pos | Goals | Apps | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olivier Giroud | Arsenal | FW | 10 | 24 | 2,064 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | MF | 8 | 18 | 1,495 |
| Theo Walcott | Arsenal | MF | 5 | 13 | 858 |
| Santiago Cazorla | Arsenal | MF | 4 | 20 | 1,629 |
| Mesut Özil | Arsenal | MF | 4 | 21 | 1,810 |
Muller has eight league goals this season which is double the amount Ozil has produced in the Premier League. Not a lot to read into this stat because the Premier League is a more difficult division to play in and hence, it’s harder to score frequently.
Assists
| Player | Club | Pos | Goal Assist | Apps | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mesut Özil | Arsenal | MF | 8 | 21 | 1,810 |
| Olivier Giroud | Arsenal | FW | 6 | 24 | 2,064 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | MF | 6 | 18 | 1,495 |
| Theo Walcott | Arsenal | MF | 4 | 13 | 858 |
| Jack Wilshere | Arsenal | MF | 4 | 21 | 1,521 |
Despite all the recent criticism of Ozil and accusations that he’s gone off the boil, he still has more league assists this season than his fellow German. He makes the right decisions under pressure at the right times. Arsenal should be confident he’ll add a Champions League assist later.
Dribbles Won
| Player | Club | Pos | Won Contest / apps | Apps | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jack Wilshere | Arsenal | MF | 2.00 | 21 | 1,521 |
| Mesut Özil | Arsenal | MF | 1.71 | 21 | 1,810 |
| Santiago Cazorla | Arsenal | MF | 1.55 | 20 | 1,629 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | MF | 1.50 | 18 | 1,495 |
| Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain | Arsenal | MF | 1.43 | 7 | 269 |
The stats would also suggest that Ozil is more effective in terms of dribbles won, with Muller only managing to win one contest per match in the Bundesliga. Gunners should be confident Ozil will win any dribble contests later, allowing him to be effective in Bayern’s final third or to pass off to someone in a better position.
Total Scoring Attempts
| Player | Club | Pos | Total Scoring Att / apps | Apps | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olivier Giroud | Arsenal | FW | 3.25 | 24 | 2,064 |
| Santiago Cazorla | Arsenal | MF | 2.60 | 20 | 1,629 |
| Theo Walcott | Arsenal | MF | 2.54 | 13 | 858 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | MF | 2.22 | 18 | 1,495 |
| Mesut Özil | Arsenal | MF | 1.19 | 21 | 1,810 |
Ozil has a much lower average per game than Muller when it comes to total scoring attempts with Muller averaging 2.5 per game this season. Again, it can be explained by the fact Muller sometimes plays a more advanced role for Bayern Munich, with Ozil content to move the ball on rather than shoot himself.
Passes
| Player | Club | Pos | Total Pass / apps | Apps | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | MF | 70.11 | 18 | 1,495 |
| Mesut Özil | Arsenal | MF | 65.90 | 21 | 1,810 |
| Mikel Arteta | Arsenal | MF | 62.42 | 19 | 1,354 |
| Santiago Cazorla | Arsenal | MF | 59.80 | 20 | 1,629 |
| Bacary Sagna | Arsenal | DF | 52.43 | 23 | 1,980 |
Ozil is head and shoulders above Muller in terms of passes per match with the Bayern star managing 33.4 per league game. However, that can be explained through the fact that Muller hasn’t been consistently used in one position by Pep Guardiola featuring on both flanks, in central midfield as well as playing in behind the main striker.
image: © Ronnie Macdonald
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