Mesut Ozil's Moment of Genius Is Further Evidence of Evolution of His Game

In the early stages of Arsenal's match against Ludogorets, Mesut Ozil raced clear of the defence to find himself faced with the opposition goalkeeper. Presented with a good opportunity to open the scoring, he finished tamely.

It was a moment of frustration for the Arsenal fans, who briefly feared the timid and shot-shy Ozil had returned. However, by the end of the night he had delivered a stunning demonstration of his newfound goalscoring instincts. The German settled the match with a moment of pure class that will live long in memory. 

Put clear by substitute Mohamed Elneny, he lifted the ball over the onrushing keeper, deftly side-stepped around two sliding defenders and tapped home into the now-empty net. It was a goal which showed imagination, confidence and supreme technical skill.
Lesser players would have shot at the first possible opportunity. There are highly gifted players who might have made it around the goalkeeper, but would then have been crowded out by recovering defenders. Ozil had the presence of mind and the poise to see the whole picture. It was both devastating and beautiful.
Afterwards, a relieved Arsene Wenger told arsenal.com he had initially worried Ozil should have taken the shot earlier:
You know, I would say the great players make the right decisions in the game situations they face. They always make the optimal solution. To me it didn't look for a while like the optimal solution, but when the ball was in the net I thought it was! You wanted him to take maybe his chance earlier but at the end he had enough skill to prove that he was right.
Ozil is proving himself as a man who can be trusted in front of goal. This was his seventh strike of 2016/17—given that he managed just eight in the entirety of last season, there's clearly been a dramatic upturn in his potency.
Mesut Ozil's goal against Ludogorets was a demonstration of his outrageous ability.
The reasons for that are two-fold. For much of the season he's benefited from a more fluid Arsenal system. With Alexis Sanchez operating as the team's centre-forward, Ozil is obliged to run beyond the Chilean and increase his penalty-box presence.
However, Alexis was not stationed as a No. 9 against Ludogorets, so this change in Ozil must be down to more than Wenger's tactical setup. There has been a psychological shift. Previously, when Ozil found himself in goalscoring positions, his doubt and hesitation were obvious. Now there is conviction. He believes he can be a match-winner in his own right, rather than merely a mercurial provider.
While this match will be remembered for Ozil's moment of majesty, there was plenty more to it than that. His goal set the seal on what was a difficult game for the Gunners.
With a north London derby against Tottenham looming, it was anticipated that Wenger might rotate a little from the weekend's victory over Sunderland. There were five changes, with David Ospina, Carl Jenkinson, Granit Xhaka, Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud all coming in.
One change was enforced—Jenkison replaced Hector Bellerin, who had picked up a late injury in training. Another was widely expected: Ospina has been named in each of Arsenal's Champions League games thus far. The Colombian can probably expect to play in each of the remaining group-stage games—he made a number of crucial interventions over the course of the evening.
It was a little surprising that the star duo of Alexis and Ozil were both picked to play from the start. The availability of Giroud afforded Wenger the chance to rest the Chilean, but he clearly felt this was a game where Arsenal needed their marquee talent on the field. 
Olivier Giroud was on target again in Bulgaria.
However, while this was a strong XI, it was not Arsenal's best XI. In a difficult first half, several of the changes clearly destabilised the team that has done so well for so much of the season.
The main issue was the the way the shape of the team changed to accommodate Giroud. The Frenchman's style demands he is selected at centre-forward, and that meant pushing Alexis out to the flank. While Giroud is clearly an effective player, Arsenal typically function better with a more mobile striker.
Ramsey and Alexis found themselves starting from the wing, but neither player is inclined to get outside their full-back and drive to the byline. Neither player offers as much natural width as Theo Walcott or Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. The absence of the forward-thinking Bellerin was also keenly felt.
As a consequence, the Gunners were occasionally a little narrow. That also meant for long periods, Ozil was crowded out. He would have to wait until the game's final minutes to make his most dazzling contribution.
Despite the problems in their attacking setup, in the early period of the game Arsenal's problems were at the back. Although Arsenal beat Ludogorets comfortably in the reverse fixture, the 6-0 scoreline did not tell the full story of that game. Ospina was called into action several times during that match as the Bulgarians showed they had the quality and sense of adventure to offer a serious threat to the Gunners' back line.
So it proved again, as Ludogorets sprinted into a surprise 2-0 lead. First Wanderson's set-piece saw Jonathan Cafu escape the attention of his markers to tap in at the far post. Then, just three minutes later, Cafu roasted Kieran Gibbs to cross for his strike partner Claudiu Keseru to score.
Arsenal were reeling—this was not in the plan. However, Wenger's men had showed impressive strength of character to cope when pegged back by Sunderland in their last Premier League game. That growing maturity was in evidence once again as they held their nerve and fought back to get to 2-2 by half-time.
Xhaka started the comeback, tucking home after a cross from Ozil. It was his third goal since joining the Gunners—although bought primarily as a defensive midfielder, the Switzerland international has shown he can be effective at both ends of the pitch. 
Granit Xhaka scored his third Arsenal goal against Ludogorets.
Then Giroud, who had proved Arsenal's saviour at the Stadium of Light, headed home a drilled Ramsey cross for his third of the campaign. 
Arsenal had to be patient as they sought a winner, but the final goal of the game was undoubtedly worth the wait. Composure was the theme of the evening—it's what Arsenal produced in difficult circumstances at 2-0 down, and it's what Ozil had which enabled him to score that breathtaking winner. Arsenal and Ozil might have panicked—instead, they were commendably assured.
The winning goal was all the more important given that Paris Saint-Germain also snatched a late lead at Basel. Group A seems set to be decided by the clash between PSG and Arsenal on Nov. 23. In this scintillating form, who would bet against Ozil making the decisive impact in that match too?