Santi Cazorla is Back at his Best for Arsenal and the Results are Impressive

Graham Ruthven explains how the Spaniard's improved play has coincided with Arsenal's recent purple patch on the pitch.

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In archetypal Arsenal fashion, Arsene Wenger’s side have made up for lost time since the turn of the year. The Gunners might have endured a difficult start to the season, but their top four challenge is now finally in full momentum.

Taking the Premier League table on form over the past six games, Arsenal occupy second spot - behind only Liverpool. Wenger’s side have won five over that stretch, with their only defeat coming in the North London derby against Spurs. Arsenal have found their groove.

Such form requires several players to up their respective games, but one figure has done so more than anyone else. Santi Cazorla is the spark from which Arsenal have caught light over the past few weeks and months.

Against Crystal Palace Cazorla found the net from the spot - his seventh successful penalty kick of the season so far - but the playmaker largely failed to replicate the form that has seen him collect the PFA Fans’ Player of the Month for both December and January. That shouldn’t undermine just how good the Spaniard has been of late.

The comprehensive 2-0 win at Manchester City in January demonstrated Cazorla at his very best, with the Spaniard scoring and contributing an excellent assist at the Etihad Stadium. Arsenal now boast one of the most inherently potent frontlines in the Premier League, and Cazorla is the player to who orchestrates the tune they play.

With the arrival of Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid last season some questioned whether Cazorla would even warrant a place in Arsenal’s starting lineup, at least in his preferred position in behind the central striker. Indeed, the Spanish international initially had to make do with a peripheral role on the wing to accommodate Arsenal’s most expensive player.

So uncertain was Cazorla’s future at Arsenal, he was linked with a move back to La Liga with Atletico Madrid just a few weeks ago. Only through injury to Ozil, as well as Jack Wilshere, was the Spanish playmaker afforded the chance to play in a central position this season, where he has flourished since.

For a player that takes such risks in the final third Cazorla’s pass completion rate of 88 percent for the season is remarkable, averaging 2.3 key passes per game in the process. Seven goals and six assists represents an impressive return for someone who looked close to the Arsenal exit door not too long ago.

But what happens when Ozil returns from injury? Given Arsenal’s injury track-record it seems unlikely that Wenger will ever have a fully fit frontline roster at his disposal, but regardless, the Gunners are now at their attacking best for a decade.

“A prolific Premier League attack should score between 70 to 100 goals in a season,” Wenger explained. “We are not there yet, but this attack is our best since Thierry Henry’s days. This one has the potential since Thierry’s time and this weekend is the first time we have been able to line them up all together, so we are yet to see what they are capable of achieving.”

The hard-fought win over Crystal Palace demonstrated that not only do Arsenal have the flair and invention - through the likes of Cazorla - to break down packed defences, but the resolve to repel the physical bombardment of their own backline too (although they had the woodwork to thank in the latter stages of the contest).

Cazorla’s development is reflective of Arsenal’s improvement as a team. Giroud too has continued his progression as the focal point of the Gunners’ attack, providing the final third cutting edge needed to make the most of the chances Arsenal’s inventors create. The Frenchman has taken time to bed in under Wenger, but now finds the North London club’s entire frontline built around him.

“Giroud’s style is less elegant than strikers before him like Robin Van Persie,” said Wenger ahead of Saturday’s win at Selhurst Park. “But he has progressed a lot and he is now a complete striker because he has added decisive passes to his game. He works for the team more than most players who contribute that many goals.”

Arsenal are a flaky side, and if there is to be a criticism of Cazorla it is that he too is too susceptible to dips and peaks in form. But on their game the Gunners are arguably the best side in the Premier League, and their mercurial playmaker might just be the best player.