Arsene Wenger: Stats show Arsenal's Mesut Ozil is the best in the Premier League

Ozil was the inspiration as the Gunners recovered from their rout at Southampton to brush aside Bournemouth 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium after setting up Gabriel's opener before firing the second.

Arsenal's most influential figure is also the dominant force in this season's Premier League and a gushing Wenger acclaimed him as "exceptional" and compared him to club favourite Dennis Bergkamp.

When asked if Ozil is currently the best player in the competition, Wenger replied: "Look at the numbers on the assists and they speak for him.

"Yes he reminds me of Bergkamp. Bergkamp was more of a goalscorer than him and Ozil is more about assists, but now Ozil is becoming more of a goalscorer, so they are really comparable.

"I have seen a few good games from Ozil. What's important is that he's convincing everyone that he's not just a very talented player, but someone who is ready to work very hard for the team.

"Overall he is the complete player. I've not seen many players of his quality. He's an exceptional player and you have to give me credit - I always defended that point of view even when people were sceptical.

"What's important is that he becomes as good as he can be, and he is on the way to doing that. At the moment he's absolutely fantastic.

"Mesut was the focal point of our team against Bournemouth because we had a new midfield again. He was the guy who gave reassurance with his technical security and fluidity. He gives the team confidence."

Keeper Petr Cech set a new Premier League record for clean sheets of 170 games after denying Bournemouth, moving above David James to write his name in the history books.

"Petr can be very proud because it's a remarkable achievement. People don't realise how much commitment, focus and consistency is behind that," Wenger said.

"On top of that he's a remarkably gifted goalkeeper. Of course, he's comparable with David Seaman."

Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe could only admire Ozil's performance.

"The goal he scored was typical Arsenal, it was a great goal and there wasn't a great deal we could do with that. He's an exceptional player," Howe said.