Mesut Ozil was not only the best buy of the English summer. He was also the stupidest sell. Real Madrid must have again wept into the fountain at the Plaza de Cibeles, in the square where they celebrate their triumphs, as he dismantled Napoli in the first half here with his artistry.

Many a page will groan and countless blogs will glow this season with descriptions of Ozil's talent, which is most lethal when he is expending the least effort. Shaping his foot to finish, gliding into space or flicking a ball past bamboozled defenders, Ozil affirms that a cool mind causes the most destruction. Like all the best players, he operates on his own clock, and performs entertaining acts according to his own sense of how a ball should work as a weapon.

Off to a flier: Mesut Ozil. Credit:Reuters

But Ozil's greatest virtue, in the Arsenal context, is that he is a proven winner who has reached the age of 24 not hoping but expecting to lay hands on trophies. His CV is full of conquests. A Spanish league winner with Real in 2011-2012, he is also a European Under-21 Championship winner with Germany and a German Cup holder with Bremen, where he also reached a Uefa Cup final.

The last thing Arsenal needed now, especially at 50 million Euros), was another floaty, decorative attacking midfielder who would value beauty more highly than outcomes. Ozil is the polar opposite of self-indulgent. He displays no interest in empty elaboration. Every move he makes, every pass he directs, is intended to cause a problem, or open up some possibility.