Ozil: Premier League is the best in the world

The Germany international arrived in north London on the final day of the summer transfer window in a £42.5 million move from Real Madrid. His surprise arrival immediately lifted spirits at Emirates Stadium after a gloomy summer.

He has since played 10 times in English football's top flight, and that has been enough to convince him of the strength of the division.

Speaking exclusively in the January 2014 edition of FourFourTwo - out now in print and on iPad - the playmaker insisted the Premier League is stronger than the Bundesliga, where he played for Schalke and Werder Bremen, or La Liga, where he spent three years with Real Madrid.

"I've played in the three strongest leagues in the world - Germany, Spain and now England," Ozil told FFT. "So I know what I'm talking about when I say, for me, the Premier League is the best. It is competitive. Anyone can beat anyone."

The German superstar's performances have helped the Gunners open a four-point lead at the top of the Premier League table with a third of the season gone. The 25-year-old has scored two league goals and provided six assists since his move to London, and puts his and his team's success down to the fluid nature of the Arsenal attack.

"The manager wants us to move around and swap positions," he said. "Sometimes I move over to the flank and then Cazorla is in the central position, sometimes it's Rosicky. It makes it harder for the opposition to stop us.

"Of course I"m happy to play in the playmaker position, because I have my freedom there. But you have to make spontaneous decisions on the pitch. When you notice gaps, you move over to the left or to the right. 

"I play the same for the national team too. It's one reason why we are so successful and score so many goals, that we change positions."

Read the full exclusive interview with Mesut Ozil in the January 2014 edition of FourFourTwo magazine - out now in print and on iPad.