Lost: Mesut Ozil. £42.5m reward if found.

Last week's UEFA Champions League match against Bayern Munich was a game of what ifs. What if Szczesny wasn't sent off? What if Ozil had scored our early penalty? We responded well following the 2-0 defeat, albeit against a weak looking Sunderland, but one player who sat out for the league game, Ozil, becomes centre of attention for my latest blog post.

I think the criticism of the midfielder is a fair one, especially as you know the quality he has. I wrote about the media's criticism of him only last month and so it seems not much has changed. Wenger said he missed last weekend's Premier League action due to injury but perhaps some time out to consider his performances and all the abilities needed in English football would be a good thing for Mesut.

We know he settled in immediately following his £42.5m summer transfer deadline day move from Real Madrid but he is a shadow of the player we saw at the beginning of the season, and he certainly looks missing when he features in the big games.

Today Arsene Wenger has revealed Ozil is struggling to stay settled at the Emirates Stadium according to the London Evening Standard. However Wenger quite rightly will not allow Ozil to 'shoulder the burden' of our Premier League title drive.

The players were given a two-day break at the start of this week which they are fully deserving following all the football they have played over the previous two weeks. Ozil is fit to play against Stoke tomorrow but I think the 25-year-old might need a little more than a couple of days rest to evaluate himself.

He needs to work a lot harder on his defensive game which is something he was less accustomed to doing in Spanish football. This is a good argument as to why the Premier League is much harder, and a player who fits Ozil's price tag must be equipped for all areas of play. Perhaps though he is missing the lack of really big names ahead and around him. When you consider his time at Madrid he had the likes of Benzema and Ronaldo to play with and set-up for fun. Going forward is his forte but with us his only option is often Giroud.

Ozil is recognised globally as one of the best playmakers in the world and so he should be in with a shout of a place in Germany's World Cup squad, but poor his form speaks a lot. Draxler, Kroos and Muller can play his position and they aren't bad names to call upon as replacements.

If I was in Wenger's position, I would sit Ozil out for a week or two and take it from there. What he doesn't need is the fans getting on his back. The Ozil we knew is lost but he will be found.

Arsenal play Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium tomorrow at 3pm GMT.

Ozil: going through a difficult time (courtesy of London Evening Standard).

Arsene Wenger: "The referee made the decision that killed the game" - Bayern get lucky advantage due to bad referee decision

First of all this is not one of those bias fan pieces...I do try to be fair and honest even though I am a die hard Arsenal fan, and secondly this isn't a disgruntled fan's ramble either - though I am obviously disappointed in the result. Having said that many readers will probably disagree with me and still think I am looking for excuses when I say that the referee made TWO bad decisions in both awarding Bayern's penalty and sending off Szczesny at the same time.

After a bright start by us, Bayern began to find their way in the match, and somewhat thanks to our heads dropping as a result of Mesut Ozil's previously saved spot kick.

Bayern's much talked about penalty was awarded later on in the first half when Arjen Robben latched onto a chipped ball over the defence. He stretched out a leg aiming to bring the ball down with Szczesny coming out to meet him. Now Robben's touch wasn't great as the ball veered off to the left of goal but there was contact made by the winger and keeper. The ball had passed Robben though but regardless, the ref pointed to the spot and showed Szczesny red.

I've watched it again, and again, oh and again (and a few more times after that) and yes the rules state it's a penalty if there's contact but it's very much Robben ensuring he gets the decision. I can understand if Szczesny full on wipes him out directly in front of him but for me Robben's lost control of the ball. Furthermore, Sagna was back to cover immediately and, regardless of Jamie Redknapp's view on Sky Sports' coverage, if Robben genuinely thought he had the easy chance of getting around Szczesny following the touch (I really don't think he did), he would've just poked the goal into the net to score (rather than have his side take a chance from the spot). Thus, it was not exactly a goal scoring opportunity with the ball running away from goal.

Arjen Robben, known for his theatrics, in action against his former side Chelsea.

It was a decision which changed the game that's for sure and from that point in we faced an uphill struggle with Bayern controlling the rest of the game. In the end we lost by two pretty good goals by Kroos and Muller, there's no denying that, but it's how the game changed from our point of view, after that red card.

Wenger faced the difficult decision of who to bring off for Fabianski (who had another decent game in Szczesny's absence) and Santi Cazorla was the unfortunate player to make way. A bit like when we played Barcelona in the 2006 UEFA Champions League final, he made a bad decision when he brought off Pires following Lehmann's red card in Paris that night. Last night though Ozil should have been Wenger's choice to make way for Fabs, particularly on hindsight - that wonderful thing.

Ozil has faced some criticism recently and last night he looked lost again; a far cry from the player who first arrived at the Emirates Stadium on transfer deadline day. He missed an early penalty last night as he strolled up to his penalty and calmly placed his shot against the strong palm of Manuel Neuer. He didn't seem to recover from his poor penalty.

Lost: Mesut Ozil.

A friend asked me what scoreline I would pick if I depended on it and I said a two nil or three nil Bayern win so I guess overall it ended as I expected. But it really was a game of what ifs though you have to accept it as what's happened has happened.

Is the tie over? Probably. But we faced a two goal deficit going to the Allianz Arena last year and won 2-0 and, if we play like we did then and show the intensity as we did prior to last night's sending off, who's to say we can't turn this tie around.

Click here (opens in new tab) for Wenger's post-match press conference where he also discusses the ref's decision and Ozil.

Thanks for reading and queue the trolling (most probably from non Arsenal fans).

Arsenal v Bayern Munich in 2013 (lost 1-3).

Making our defensive game even better: Flamini and Arteta

For the majority of this season, our defence has received much praise by Wenger and the media and quite rightly so. This is no doubt to the hard work of of Steve Bould behind the scenes and we have seen Koscielny and Mertesacker form a pretty solid partnership. The German has improved a lot since his arrival to the Emirates and looks to have adjusted to the pace of English football.

Of course there was one surprise transfer that happened last summer and that was the return of Flamini. I was actually quite happy Wenger decided to bring back the defensive midfielder, though our boss was a little reluctant. You can't however deny the impact he has had sitting in front of the the back four.

Okay, so we have had a couple of slip ups this year when you consider the number of goals conceded against Manchester City and more recently Liverpool, but Flamini's return from suspension for Sunday's FA Cup match certainly helped us to avenge the 5-1 defeat the week before.

Rightly so, though no offence to the Spaniard, but Flamini is often the preferred choice in the defensive midfield position, ahead of Mikel Arteta. Wenger made Arteta play in a more defensive position when he brought him in from Everton while at Goodison Park, he had a more attacking role that I think probably suits him better.

On Sunday however, the stats do not lie, and the duo combination of both Flamini and Arteta helped us on our way to helping the back four deal with Liverpool's threats going forward.

Mathieu Flamini (Zimbio.com).

In his BBC Sport column Robbie Savage notes Arsenal had much more of a defensive resilience against Liverpool in the FA Cup which helped us on our way to progressing to the next round. We played much deeper too compared to the 5-1 league defeat eight days previously as we learned from our mistakes. But having both Flamini and Arteta on form only boosted our defensive play this time around.

And like I said the stats don't lie. In Savage's report the statistics (source: Opta Stats) show with the pairing in games across the Premier League this year, we have won just about as many games with them together as we have without, while we've lost just one match when they have played together.

What is interesting is that, with them as defensive players, we have actually scored more goals (26) than when they haven't played together, and we've conceded far less too - probably the most important stat - conceding just nine goals as opposed to the 17 when they haven't featured together.

Against Liverpool on Sunday particularly Arteta's tackles were all successful while Flamini completed more passes in the opposition half with a high completion passing rate of 75%.

Their partnership has certainly helped us this year for sure but I'm still not sure Arteta is the man for the defensive midfield job when Flamini is either injured or suspended. I wonder if the 31-year-old may be looking to move on soon perhaps though with Wenger not so keen on keeping players over 30.

Mikel Arteta.

Personally I prefer Ramsey to Arteta and we've had much success with the pairing of Flamini and Ramsey too; it's a real shame the Welshman is still sidelined, considering his inspired form this season.

Tonight sees the return of the UEFA Champions League and we're in action against Bayern Munich tomorrow night (not that any of you will need reminding). For sure we go into the game as the underdogs but having Flamini available gives us a major boost. I should think Arteta or Wilshere will sit alongside him but after the duo's display against Liverpool, I suppose I'd have no qualms in seeing both Flamini and Arteta covering our defence.

I hope that Arteta though will be ready for the pace and sheer quality of Bayern's players. There is no room for error against the current champions!

For Robbie Savage's report on how Arsenal saw off Liverpool in the FA Cup, click here (opens in new tab) to be directed to the BBC page.

Arsenal v Bayern Munich during the 2012/13 season (Flickr.com).

Arsenal 2 - 1 Liverpool: Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fabianski and Sanogo shine

It felt so so good at the final whistle yesterday getting one over Liverpool (especially as I can't stand Brendan Rodgers and considering the 5-1 thumping we received by his side last weekend) to secure our place against Everton in the next round of the FA Cup.

The 2-1 win yesterday evening certainly does us credibility as we proved not to be overcome by Liverpool's attacking threats in the likes of Suarez, Sturridge, Sterling and Coutinho. Considering the way in which we collapsed straight from kick off back at Anfield, the players were more aware defensively this time around and we were able to launch decent counter attacking moves. Boosted by the return of Flamini, Fabianksi's inspired performance, and riding our luck at times maybe, we ultimately did ourselves justice.  

I felt Jack Wilshere and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain were our two best performers (probably only performers on the day) up at Anfield and Chambo gained a starting place in the side for the FA Cup tie. He was in good form again yesterday scoring our first before setting up Podolski for the second, although a risky tackle sent Suarez to the ground in the second half, but Howard Webb deemed it a fair challenge.

His pace and threat on our attacks caused Liverpool's defence problems; he's been a much welcomed return since being sidelined through injury and particularly as Walcott won't be back until next season.

Mesut Ozil has improved since his dip in form.

Wenger handed Fabianski a start with Szczesny rested, which meant Viviano kept the bench warm; our loanee keeper is still looking to feature for us since joining on loan from Palermo back in August. I'll be posting about Viviano's disappointing year soon.

Anyway Fabianski was in fine form between the sticks denying Sturridge very early on (as Liverpool looked to pick up where they left off the week before) and Suarez on a few occasions as well - the Uruguayan has failed in three attempts to find the back of Arsenal's net this season, after the summer where he was apparently set to move to the Emirates Stadium. Fabianski continued to show safe hands throughout yesterday's match getting behind efforts from Suarez and Coutinho as Liverpool looked to find a second goal upon closing the deficit. Gerrard's penalty, which gave Liverpool their goal, sent Fabianski the wrong way but it was well placed right into the bottom left hand corner of the goal, giving our polish stopper no chance even if he had gone the right way!

Fabianski is rumoured to be leaving in the summer for more first team action and his heroics in the cup game will certainly help his cause. When called upon he has proved himself this year but opportunities have come few and far between with only a bad injury to Szszesny likely to give him a regular first team opportunity.

Lukas Fabianski is second choice to Wojciech Szczesny, still ahead of
Emiliano Viviano and Damien Martinez. 

However Yaya Sanogo was perhaps the biggest surprise yesterday. The France Under-21 striker was given the nod over Giroud and Bendtner (Park rightly not even given a place on the bench) and he did very well in leading the line. I was not looking forward to seeing his name on the team sheet and I can't say I was that impressed by his two previous efforts when he appeared once in the Premier League and Champions League against Fulham and Fenerbache before facing time out injured.

But he warmed into yesterday's match showing glimpses of why Wenger signed him. He played his part in our first goal too as looks to prove himself. He chested down Ozil's cross and did well to get in a shot on goal which unfortunately hit Gerrard but fortunately for Chambo, the ball rebounded to him and he made no mistake blasting past Brad Jones in the Liverpool goal. Sanogo had some good touches and was linking up well with his team mates and is fully deserving of the praise by Wenger after the match.

So we will now go on to play Everton at the Emirates on March 8th. I much prefer a home tie obviously but Everton will be no easy task. They've been doing well this season considering the departure of David Moyes but Roberto Martinez has steered them to sixth place so far in the Premier League.

Our next match is of course against Bayern Munich so let's take things just one game at a time before worrying about the FA Cup quarter-finals. The likes of Giroud, Gibbs and Wilshere were all rested on Sunday, and home advantage gives us some boost but we go into this game on Wednesday night as the underdogs. Bayern Munich are the holders of the UEFA Champions League and top the Bundesliga table, but we did very well in beating Liverpool in the FA Cup, and with support of our own fans at the Emirates, Wednesday night could go either way. Let's just hope we haven't lost the game after 20 minutes!

Taking his chance: Yaya Sanogo (credit: SkySports)

Arsenal/Liverpool to face Everton in FA Cup quarter-finals

Just a quickie before the game kicks off then...

As I am sure most of you will have just seen whoever progresses to the next round of the FA Cup will play a home tie against Everton.

That's the FA Cup proving it is no easy trophy to win I guess! Everton have been in good form generally this year considering the departure of David Moyes who we all know has been pretty much a flop at Manchester United.

So will we be hosting the Toffees at the Emirates in the quarter-finals? Or will it be a hotly contested Scouse derby on the TV? Here's hoping we put in a wonderful performance today though I have heard Wenger may be putting out a slightly weakened side considering Bayern Munich's visit to our place later in the week!

Let's just hope tonight is no repeat of last weekend ey! Our fate will be decided come this evening while Everton beat Swansea 3-1 at Goodison Park earlier today

Enjoy the game.

Will Arsene Wenger bid for Mario Balotelli in the summer?

However much truth may or may not be in this, I can certainly say either way that I didn't see this one coming. Various sources have been linking us with the former Manchester City striker / thug that is Mario Balotelli.

The 23-year-old currently plays for Italian outfit AC Milan but is rumoured to be wanting a move potentially back to England after suffering racist abuse in Italy.

Despite the arrogance and aggressive nature that he possesses, the striker is exactly the type of player we need to lead the line. I would much rather see him grabbing goals for Arsenal which is what Giroud has been lacking. Football fans will remember Balotelli's eye for goal and his physical strength which makes him a great striker; he certainly proved this at Manchester City.

The negative aspects of his character however is something I would hope Wenger could stamp out of the Italian forward which would make his overall game much better. If there is truth in a deal looking likely between Arsenal and AC Milan, the disappointment is that a deal for Balotelli would come too late considering we need a decent forward right now!

Wenger is surely ruing the missed opportunity to sign Schalke's attacking midfielder Julian Draxler in January but a deal for the 20-year-old German could also still be on the cards.

Schalke have revealed he may not be considered in next season's plans considering he wants a move away to further his career; £37m is the asking price that will activate his buy-out clause, and allow us to enter negotiations with the highly rated Draxler.

Arsenal to return for want-away Draxler?

And our new deal with Puma will certainly help us to bid and negotiate for more high rated players in the summer. Of course, last summer we supposedly missed out on the likes of Rooney, Suarez and Benzema so we may have a little more luck this time around.

For now let us focus on what we do know and that's our opportunity to progress in the F.A Cup tomorrow. After last week's thrashing at the hands of tomorrow's opponent's, I am a little wary of facing Liverpool again. As much I do believe it was just a one-off I can't help but think we are on a downward spiral and be about to wave our season goodbye. It wouldn't be the first time we've done that around this time of the year!

Still I hope to be proven wrong. We're in front of our own fans tomorrow which should help, but I think the squad need a major boost and a kick up the backside if they are to prevent another disappointing fate against Brendan Rodgers' side tomorrow.

The game is live on BT Sport tomorrow, kicking off at 4pm GMT.

Mario Balotelli - Italy v England, Euro 2012

Arsenal v Manchester United: Opportunity to prove Liverpool result a one-off

Has it sunk in yet?

I was unable to get out a post after the Anfield demolishing, though I think I'd have struggled to find the words following that game.

It's a result the players need to quickly put behind them and I am sure it is simply a one-off. As much as we were far from a decent team on Saturday we did at least do a little better in the second half which in itself ended 1-1.

Looking at the month, the Liverpool match was seen as the start of a difficult period and the way in which we fell at their feet does not bode well for the forthcoming fixtures, but with Manchester United rocking this season, we have a great opportunity tonight to respond.

We have been playing good football on the whole this season and have done well to be in with a real chance of winning the Premier League for the first time in a while. Saturday lunchtime however showed why we may end up behind the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea though as collectively we just never looked up for it.

With Flamini missing through suspension there was no cover or communication at the back while our back four were unable to cope with Liverpool's attacking threat. The midfield were undone and closed down at every opportunity by the hosts, Ozil looked particularly poor, and Giroud had no service to do any potential danger in their half.

For me Arteta proved exactly why he should not be a defensive midfielder but as I said, it was not an individual performance that let us down here - apart from Wilshere and Oxlade Chamberlain, nobody looked up for this and even with the lack of service for Giroud, as a Premier League forward he still isn't good enough to be a leading striker for our club. Ozil has continued recently to show he isn't worthy of the £42m price tag - is he missing the winter break he became accustomed to Spain? He looked to have settled in straight away when he moved to Arsenal on transfer deadline day but we've seen nothing of the player as we did then.

Fortunately, Flamini is set for his return against United tonight where our defence will be up against Rooney and Van Persie; no easy task after being undone against the attacking force of Liverpool just days before! Still, I believe that was a one-off, as for however good Liverpool were, we certainly played a part in their demolition job.

Still we have the chance to prove this as a one-off when Brendan Rodgers' side travel down to the Emirates Stadium for the F.A Cup on Sunday. But before then we have the big match tonight and a chance to gear ourselves up, and make the Emirates a real fortress this month!

Sturridge was one of the scorers in Liverpool's 5-1 win at Anfield.

All eyes on Manchester City tonight as we enter our crucial month

Tonight hosts a massive game in the Premier League with Manchester City playing Chelsea; a game coined as the most expensive in English football. Manchester City are contesting with us at the moment for top spot, while Chelsea are only five points behind us, so a draw will certainly be Arsenal's best bet.

We returned to top the table with our 2-0 home win against Crystal Palace yesterday, as our slip up a couple of weeks ago against Southampton meant we would finally give up top spot with Manchester City breathing down our necks. Oxlade-Chamberlain was on form to grab two well taken goals yesterday and it's great to see him return to the squad in such good form following the months he spent injured.

So now with City just two behind us, a draw will maintain our oh so sight advantage.

One thing which worries me though, with the season's end coming into sight, is the number of midfielders we have at Wenger's command. Wilshere, Ramsey, an now new signing Kim Kallstrom are all sidelined (not forgetting Abou Diaby I suppose?) and Flamini is serving a suspension. Flamini and Diaby disregarded, we are looking at around six weeks (seven to nine for full match fitness) for our other injured players to return; players we really need at this time of the season.    

Chambo in action last season.

The January transfer window is a great opportunity for managers to bring in extra numbers for the crucial final third of the season and Wenger recruited the injured Kallstrom from Spartak Moscow on loan. Since his arrival on Friday, Wenger has been forced to explain his decision in bringing the player in, who injured himself while falling on his back just days before his agreed move.

Wenger has now said the Swedish international may never feature for Arsenal will questions certainly why this deal went ahead. Wenger states if he knew the extent of his injury (Kallstrom could be sidelined for six weeks) then he would have looked elsewhere, though there was no time for that. Again, Wenger leaves things to the last minute so he can only blame himself for this one, especially after we had a great opportunity to sign Julian Draxler.

As I've said before, and as we all know all too well, this is a big month for us - probably season-defining. Liverpool are our next opponents in the Premier League up at Anfield, before we play four home matches in a row against Manchester United, Liverpool again (F.A Cup), Bayern Munich (UEFA Champions League) and Sunderland.

This month will prove whether we have the mental attitude and skill to continue maintaining our form against big sides, Bayern Munich particularly, and prove whether or not Wenger should have acted sooner when he had the chance in January.

Back to live football though, City v Chelsea tonight (20:00 k/o GMT) should be a great one and all eyes at the Emirates will be firmly locked on that one!

Kim Kallstrom on international duty for Sweden.