Mesut Ozil's volley earns Arsenal three points to put them back into the top four. English Premier League: Mesut Ozil (23') Arsenal 1-0 Newcastle Craig Burley thinks Arsene Wenger was "out of touch" and "lacked class" after taking a dig at Man City's financial resources.
LONDON -- Arsene Wenger has urged Mesut Ozil to take more risks in front of goal following his wonder-strike that handed Arsenal a 1-0 win over Newcastle on Saturday.
Ozil scored a difficult left-foot volley in the 23rd minute -- the kind of effort that usually ends up high in the stands -- which was enough to earn three points. It was only his third goal of the season but another reminder that the playmaker, who is much more known for his assists, can be a lethal finisher as well.
Wenger described the volley as "superb," adding that it's the kind of thing he wants to see more of from Ozil.
"You know he can deliver it, and it's important for him to take the risk to do what he did," Wenger told a news conference.
"Because usually he's a guy who, 99 percent of the time in these positions he controls the ball and gives it to somebody else. So I'm happy that he took the gamble to finish. And happy as well that he scored a very important goal."
Mesut Ozil's goal was the difference against Newcastle.
Ozil, Alexis Sanchez, Jack Wilshere, Alexandre Lacazette, Hector Bellerin and Alex Iwobi all missed good chances to kill off the game, which allowed the visitors to put Arsenal under pressure for the last 10 minutes, but Newcastle's finishing also let them down.
"We had plenty, plenty of chances," Wenger said. "But as long as it's 1-0, there comes a moment in the game where you are under threat and they have a chance. It is like that in the Premier League.
"I would have loved it to be a bit more comfortable on the scoreline, but was even more important was to get the three points today, and that's what we did."
It was Arsenal's first Premier League win in their last four matches, and featured another full 90 minutes for Jack Wilshere.
The midfielder only made his first league start of the season in Wednesday's 0-0 draw at West Ham but proved he has the fitness to play twice in in four days.
That was one of the few question marks remaining about Wilshere, who is playing for a new Arsenal contract but has only been used sparingly after several seasons ravaged by injuries.
"I believe he has the basic stamina," Wenger said. "He's like the rest of the team, he was a bit less sharp than on Wednesday night. But overall, what was very positive is he didn't weaken physically at all and still had his presence and his dribble going forward and did a good defensive job as well.
"Overall I must say it's positive he can produce two games of that quality in three days."
Mattias is ESPN FC's Arsenal correspondent. Follow him on Twitter: @MattiasKaren.
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Source: espn.co.uk