Fans were shocked in 2013's summer transfer window when Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger finally loosened the purse strings and signed Mesut Ozil for a club-record fee of £42.4 million. Wenger had earlier been chastised by pundits - and even the club's own fans - for his lack of spending and another dire season looked to be on the cards following Aston Villa's 3-1 win over the Londoners in the opening round of Premier League fixtures. But all that was reversed by one masterstroke - the capture of Ozil from Real Madrid in the summer transfer window which gagged critics and saw a remarkable improvement on the pitch. The Germany international dazzled in his home debut for Arsenal, with the midfielder, who is known as the 'assist king', setting up all three goals of the Gunner's 3-1 win over Stoke. And that Arsenal are top of the Premier League in the New Year is thanks in no small part to the talents of Ozil, whose signing could be looked back upon in May as being a pivotal moment in the title race.
Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
