Mesut Ozil has had his fair share of harsh and often unnecessary criticism over the years but this takes the cake.

After Arsenal’s 2-0 loss at the Emirates to Barcelona in the Champions League, a Spanish newspaper refused to rate the German playmaker, clearly thinking that little of his performance that he didn’t even deserve a rating.

The hatred and bitterness the media in general seems to harbour for the former Real Madrid man isn’t just perplexing, it’s angering. Opposition fans may argue that I’m looking at him through Arsenal-tinted goggles but I honestly can’t see how even rivals could look at his performance and think he was truly terrible.

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LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 23: Javier Mascherano and Andres Iniesta of Barcelona tackle Mesut Ozil of Arsenal during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between Arsenal and Barcelona at Emirates Stadium on February 23, 2016 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)

Did he get an assist or shine as he usually does? No. But he was far from bad and it’s frankly staggering that anyone would think so.

Hopefully Mesut knows we have his back and doesn’t let the criticism get to him.