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Mesut Ozil has recently come under a lot of criticism for supposedly having a very low work-rate, but the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index reveals a completely different story. According to statistics, the German who turned 27 years old today is one of the most hard working players on the pitch.
When Ozil's average distance covered per 90 minutes played was compared with other top players in the Premier League, the birthday boy came out on top. He was even higher than his teammate Alexis Sanchez who is heralded for his high work rate.
The reality though is quite ironic, as Ozil who is criticized for being lazy at times ranks very high in terms of distance covered and Sanchez who seems active on pitch covered one of the least distances on average.
Arsenal who signed Ozil from Real Madrid in the 2013/14 season, definitely found a gem of a player as the former Real Madrid man is also one of the best passers in the Premier League.
Here is the list for the average distance covered by players per 90 mins:
| Player | Team | Appearances | Time (mins) | Distance (km) | Average Distance per 90 mins |
| Mesut Ozil | Arsenal | 7 | 612 | 69.6 | 10.24 |
| Samir Nasri | Manchester City | 6 | 236 | 26.8 | 10.19 |
| Memphis Depay | Manchester United | 8 | 618 | 69.8 | 10.15 |
| Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain | Arsenal | 8 | 289 | 32.6 | 10.13 |
| Raheem Sterling | Manchester City | 7 | 544 | 60.4 | 9.99 |
| Ramires | Chelsea | 4 | 168 | 18.7 | 9.97 |
| Ross Barkley | Everton | 8 | 786 | 86.8 | 9.93 |
| Oscar | Chelsea | 4 | 301 | 33.2 | 9.89 |
| Santiago Cazorla | Arsenal | 8 | 750 | 82.3 | 9.88 |
| Philippe Coutinho | Liverpool | 7 | 614 | 67.1 | 9.83 |
| Willian | Chelsea | 7 | 419 | 45.7 | 9.82 |
| Eden Hazard | Chelsea | 8 | 783 | 84.2 | 9.67 |
| Emre Can | Liverpool | 8 | 610 | 65.6 | 9.66 |
| Yaya Toure | Manchester City | 7 | 628 | 67.3 | 9.64 |
| Francis Coquelin | Arsenal | 7 | 538 | 57.3 | 9.62 |
| Fernandinho | Manchester City | 8 | 753 | 80.5 | 9.61 |
| Theo Walcott | Arsenal | 7 | 465 | 47.3 | 9.14 |
| Alexis Sanchez | Arsenal | 8 | 638 | 63.8 | 9.01 |
How does Ozil fare when compared to other Arsenal players
In comparison to other Arsenal players Ozil ranks third. While Aaron Ramsey has outrun most of the players by a fair margin, Mikel Arteta is the person who stands in his way from reaching the second spot. Although Arteta has had very little playing time, he is technically the second most active Arsenal player. Theo Walcott and Sanchez though sit at the bottom of the table which is quite surprising as both the players are seen moving a lot.
Here is the table for the Arsenal players:
| Player | Appearances | Time (Mins) | Distance (km) | Ave Distance per 90mins |
| Aaron Ramsey | 8 | 749 | 93.5 | 11.23 |
| Mikel Arteta | 4 | 117 | 13.9 | 10.69 |
| Mesut Özil | 7 | 612 | 69.6 | 10.24 |
| Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain | 8 | 289 | 32.6 | 10.15 |
| Héctor Bellerín | 7 | 673 | 74.9 | 10.02 |
| Santiago Cazorla | 8 | 750 | 82.3 | 9.88 |
| Olivier Giroud | 8 | 361 | 39.4 | 9.82 |
| Francis Coquelin | 7 | 538 | 57.5 | 9.62 |
| Nacho Monreal | 8 | 770 | 81.3 | 9.5 |
| Gabriel Paulista | 5 | 426 | 43.5 | 9.19 |
| Theo Walcott | 7 | 465 | 47.3 | 9.15 |
| Alexis Sánchez | 8 | 638 | 63.8 | 9 |
| Laurent Koscielny | 6 | 579 | 57.7 | 8.97 |
| Per Mertesacker | 4 | 384 | 37.1 | 8.69 |
Most distance covered by an Arsenal player in a single game
While Aaron Ramsey leads this list as well, Ozil can take solace in the fact that he is one amongst two players in the squad to complete over 11.7km in a single match.
| Player | Team | Opposition | Distance Covered (km) |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | Manchester United | 12.34 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | Liverpool | 12.13 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | West Ham United | 12.03 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal | Chelsea | 11.94 |
| Mesut Özil | Arsenal | Leicester City | 11.77 |
Ozil has had several ups and downs in his time at Arsenal and his injury last season saw him miss a major chunk of it, but the German seems to be getting back into his stride after his performance against United before the International break and even impressed with Germany while on national team duty.
Data courtesy of the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, the Official Player Rating Index of the Barclays Premier League
