Saturday’s 3-1 win over Burnley coincided with Mesut Ozil captaining us for the first time since November 11.
Pre-match, much of the talk in the media centred around Ozil’s return to the team - but what’s he like inside the dressing room?
“Mesut’s not the sort of player who will scream at you in public just to show the people on the outside that he tries to push us on,” Sead Kolasinac explained after the weekend’s win. “He’ll speak in the dressing room, he’ll go to every player individually.
“With his quality, he brings a lot to this team. He’s very important for us as a captain and as a player.
“[Unfair criticism] is the case when you’re a big star, like Mesut is. Of course there are always negative headlines but, as a team, we don’t pay attention to them and Mesut doesn’t either. That’s what’s most important. We’re all behind Mesut - all the staff, all the players.
“If negative things are written, then that’s just what happens. In life, not everything is positive - sometimes there are negatives written about you too, and he’s had that. But with his performance [on Saturday] he’s quietened a few critics.”
Ozil played a central role in our first goal against Burnley, piercing a packed penalty area to find Kolasinac with a sensational through-ball.
“It was unbelievable,” Kolasinac said. “We all know Mesut’s qualities and I only actually made that run because I saw that he had the ball.
“Not many players would have been able to play that pass. He can, and when I saw him get on the ball, I knew he was going to find me. It was a brilliant pass from him.”
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