Shkodran Mustafi admits he criticises Mesut Ozil to ensure his Arsenal team-mate stays in top form.

The defender is close friends with Ozil — the pair having represented Germany at Euro 2016 — and sought his advice before making a £35million move to the Gunners from Valencia in August.

Ozil scored the first hat-trick of his senior career last night as Arsene Wenger’s side thrashed Ludogorets Razgrad 6-0 to remain top of Champions League Group A.

The club’s record signing — a £42.4m acquisition from Real Madrid in 2013 — is in excellent form but when asked by Standard Sport whether Ozil was underappreciated, given the intermittent criticism he has faced during his time in north London, Mustafi said: “Sometimes I have to criticise him as well because that’s how football is.

“Everyone makes mistakes and we have to be professional with it. Sometimes we criticise ourselves the most, it’s not the people out there that criticise us, it’s ourselves who criticise us the most.

“Because you want to play well, you want to win games, you don’t want to make mistakes. If you make one you are the first one who gets angry. But that’s football, you cannot be without errors. But he’s a fantastic player. I’m happy for him. He can make things happen in the final third. He sees runners.

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“He is a quality player and if you have that up front — and it is not only him because Lucas Perez has come in and done a great job — and give him the ball in the final third in front of the goalkeeper, you can be sure he is going to score.”