Premier League assists number 14 and 15 for the season, if Arsenal are to win the title it will be in no small part down to Mesut Özil.

Monday night’s win against Manchester City saw an ill Özil dominate, setting up first half goals for Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud.

Walcott’s goal was his third in the Premier League this season, and the second assisted by the German, for whom he had an incredible amount of praise after the game.

“It’s amazing,” Walcott said. “He’s very modest. The thing about Mesut is that he sees things that most players don’t even see on the pitch. He knows what he’s going to do before he does it, you just have to make that run.”

After a cagey start to the game, Walcott had Arsenal’s first shot. It flew past Joe Hart and turned the game on its head. There was no Alexis Sánchez, and there won’t be until mid-January, but Walcott’s goal was reminiscent of the Chilean.

“We’ve got special players on the pitch who provide special moments in the match,” said the goalscorer. “That makes our jobs so much easier. It’s a team game but you need these players in your team if you want to continue to play as well as we are at the moment.”

Despite sitting in bed all week with a chest infection, Özil assisted twice and worked incredibly hard throughout the game, winning three tackles.

Subbed off with around 10 minutes to go, the German worked tirelessly and it doesn’t go unnoticed in the dressing room.

“The amount he gives to this team, the threat going forward and also defensively, he puts a shift in and people don’t see that side of the game which has changed in the whole squad.”

On the ball and off it, Arsenal players seem to be thrilled with Mesut Özil’s contribution. Having the season of his life, it must be an absolute joy to play with the German.