adminLONDON. — Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger yesterday urged star midfielder Mesut Ozil not to dwell on his costly squandered penalty against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
The German playmaker had an opportunity to put Arsenal ahead in Wednesday’s last 16 first-leg match with an early penalty, but his tame spot-kick was saved by international team-mate Manuel Neuer.
After Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny had been sent off, Bayern went on to prevail 2-0 through second-half goals from Toni Kroos and Thomas Mueller, leaving the reigning champions in a commanding position ahead of the second leg on March 11.
Ozil subsequently apologised for his performance on Facebook, but Wenger says that he expects the 25-year-old to put the matter behind him.
“Is he over it now? Certainly not, because 48 hours is a short time to get over that, but it is part of the job as well to deal with disappointment and to show that you can respond to it,” Wenger told a press conference.
“He apologised after the game, but I don’t think people are shocked by the fact that he missed a penalty, because Bayern missed a penalty as well.”
Wenger also defended Ozil’s penalty-taking technique, which sees him employ a short, deliberate run-up before striking the ball.
“He takes his penalties in an unusual way so people are maybe a little bit less understanding, but everybody can miss penalties,” the Frenchman said.
Writing on his official Facebook page on Thursday, Ozil said: “The next morning doesn’t feel better either. Sorry guys — it wasn’t planned that way. Outnumbered it was really hard to win against this team.”
Ozil, a club-record £42.5 million signing from Real Madrid last year, was roundly criticised in the British media following a lacklustre display in the game. — AFP.
Online Reporter