Alex Iwobi, the Arsenal forward, was quick to make his views clear in the aftermath of Thursday’s Europa League stroll against Bate Borisov. Asked about the much-discussed return of Mesut Ozil to the side, Iwobi did not hesitate in leaping down from the metaphorical fence. “We scored three goals as a result of him playing,” he declared.

As a statement, it was indicative of the support that many of the players have for the ostracised but inconsistent Ozil. It was also, though, a piece of praise that could just have easily been directed towards Granit Xhaka, another left-footed schemer who does so much to control the flow of matches for Unai Emery’s side.

With Ozil still unable to secure a regular place in the starting lineup, Xhaka is arguably the only player in the Arsenal team who can dictate the speed of a game. Emery is a blood and thunder coach, a fist-pumping celebrator of tackles on the touchlines, but he also wants “control” to match the aggression. The largely unheralded Xhaka, who assisted two of Arsenal’s three goals on Thursday, has been key to those efforts this season.

It does not help Xhaka’s cause, from a PR perspective, that his true value to Arsenal is most obvious when he is absent. The 26-year-old missed three successive games before his return last week — against Cardiff, Manchester City and Huddersfield — and it showed. Against Cardiff and Huddersfield, in particular, Arsenal were ragged and disjointed throughout, despite the obvious gulf in quality between the teams. There was a lack of game management and a notable absence of intelligent possession.