10 Best Midfielders At World Cup 2018

He might not be every Arsenal fan's favourite player, but Mesut Özil has been a key cog in the ruthless German machine since making his international debut back in 2009. Statistics show that Özil is consistently one of Europe's top chance creators, and he chipped in with 5 goals and 12 assists in all competitions for Arsenal this season.

A remarkable playmaker, Özil is very highly rated by German fans and the national team boss, Joachim Löw. Impressively, he's also scored at every major tournament he's attended, including the World Cups in 2010 and 2014, as well as the European Championships in 2012 and 2016, so can probably be trusted to net again at some point during this summer's tournament.

Often criticised in England, there's no arguing with Özil's stats. He's scored 23 goals in 90 appearances for Die Mannschaft and has won the German national side Player of the Year award on no fewer than five separate occasions. In a national side replete with stars, Özil shines bright and will play a big role for the Germans in their bid to win back-to-back World Cups.