As game-seizing moments go, Mesut Özil’s part in Arsenal’s defibrillation after a deathly first half against Paris Saint-Germain was among the more quietly understated acts of on-field leadership. Arsenal needed it though. They were outplayed by PSG for most of this 2-2 draw, overrun in midfield and flattered to escape with a point.
In avoiding defeat they were indebted to a moment of stirring incision against the head from Özil, who has often been accused of disappearing in these big games. “As soon as there is physicality involved, Ozil disappears,” Raymond Domenech, always good for a line, had announced on French TV before kick-off. And this is how Özil has been cast by some: a man for the small occasion, the blunt end, those moments where the going gets smooth.
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