Mesut Özil scored his first ever hat trick as Arsenal took a big step toward qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 6-0 rout of Ludogorets at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.
The 28-year-old German midfielder capped off an impressive display against the Bulgarian champions to earn the match ball with three goals in the space of 31 second-half minutes. He's now scored six goals in 10 appearances for Arsenal this season. "He looks like he gets the taste to score goals," said Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger, who was celebrating his 100th European victory in charge of the Gunners. "We want him to be a provider and a scorer and it looks like he's slowly moving to that better balance."
The victory over Ludogorets - Arsenal's seventh in a row - means that the team is top of Group A of the Champions League at the halfway mark with seven points from three games. Arsenal has a superior goal difference over Paris Saint-Germain, which also has seven points following its 3-0 victory over Swiss side Basel on Wednesday. Ludogorets languishes in bottom place with just one point. Basel also has one point. "We were fast and dangerous," added Wenger, whose team is second behind Manchester City in the Premier League standings. "We are confident and we must stay focused in every single game." "Brilliant team performance," Özil said in a tweet after the game. "And very happy about my first ever hat trick!" Arsenal will now look ahead to a potential group decider against PSG next month.
