The secret to Ozil’s improved form? ‘My team-mates are passing to me more’

Mesut Ozil has revealed that the key to his creative success this season is he is getting more of the ball.
The German has been one of the Gunners’ key performers in the new campaign, setting a new Premier League record of supplying assists in six consecutive matches.
While Ozil’s individual form has won much praise, the German feels improved contributions all over the pitch have allowed him to thrive in the playmaker role.
“I think as a team you can see that we’ve become more mature,” Ozil explained. “We’ve learnt from our mistakes and you can see on the pitch that we’re more steady.
“We’ve had some setbacks this season but we’ve learnt from them and it shows on the pitch that my team-mates are looking for me even more and I’m able to control the game better.”
Arsenal’s £40million record signing believes that the team’s strength is depth allows them to compete even when key players are sidelined.
“You can see that we function well as a team,” Ozil told the Arsenal website. “It doesn’t matter who plays from the start, we’re always there. You need a big squad if you are to be successful and that’s why things are working well.

Gunner stay: Arsenal are keen to tie Ozil down to new deal

“When you look at the past seasons, we’ve always been a technically-strong team but when we played against big teams, we dropped points. In the second half of last season and in this year so far, we’ve proved ourselves against the biggest teams.
“You learn from your mistakes and we can measure ourselves with the best. That distinguishes us as a team.”