Mesut Özil

Özil made the run behind a defence feel like an invitation he had already noticed. His through-ball for Alexis Sánchez against Galatasaray in 2014 is a clear example: the pass connected midfield possession to a forward arriving in scoring space. The attraction is the timing rather than physical force. Evaluating his creativity means watching the positions he received in and the options he offered team-mates, while leaving room for separate arguments about a team's work without the ball.