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Mesut Ozil v Kevin De Bruyne: The key battle when Arsenal face Man City in Carabao Cup final

Ozil De Bruyne
Image: Mesut Ozil and Kevin De Bruyne go head to head at Wembley on Sunday

Will Mesut Ozil or Kevin De Bruyne come out on top in the Carabao Cup final? We check the stats ahead of Sunday's showdown...

Two of the most creative players in world football will showcase their abilities at Wembley as the first major piece of silverware is decided in the Carabao Cup final live on Sky Sports on Sunday.

Despite the high profile reputations of both Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne and Arsenal's Mesut Ozil, they have varying experience of major finals.

Live Carabao Cup Final

Sunday will be only the second cup final appearance of De Bruyne's career, and his second appearance at Wembley. In contrast, Ozil has participated in no less than 10 finals for both club and country, and is set to make his ninth appearance at England's national stadium.

Ozil v De Bruyne - Cup final appearances

Ozil cup final apps De Bruyne's cup final apps
Werder Bremen Wolfsburg
2009 UEFA Cup - 1-2 v Shakhtar (L) 2015 German Cup - 3-1 v Dortmund (W)
2009 German Cup - 1-0 Leverkusen (W) -
2010 German Cup - 4-0 v Bayern (L) -
Real Madrid
2011 Copa del Rey - 1-0 v Barcelona (W) -
2013 Copa del Rey - 1-2 v Atletico (L) -
Arsenal
2014 FA Cup - 3-2 v Hull (W) -
2015 FA Cup - 4-0 v Aston Villa (W) -
2017 FA Cup - 2-1 v Chelsea (W) -
Germany
2009 U21 Euros - 4-0 v England (W) -
2014 World Cup - 1-0 v Argentina (W) -

Ozil has won seven of his 10 career cup finals and been on the victorious side in six of his eight appearances at Wembley. His only loss at the national stadium came just this month, when Arsenal lost the north London derby 1-0 to Tottenham on February 10.

Mesut Ozil celebrates after giving Arsenal a 3-2 lead at home to Liverpool
Image: Ozil is one of the Premier League's top creators

De Bruyne's only previous Wembley appearance came against Arsenal in last season's FA Cup semi-final defeat.

While their cup final records may vary, the pair's form on the Premier League stage bears stronger resemblance.

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Since Manchester City bought De Bruyne back to England for £54.5m from Wolfsburg in August 2015, he and Ozil have been the two most creative players in the Premier League:

Premier League assists since start of 2015/16

Player Assists Open play assists
Kevin De Bruyne 41 31
Mesut Ozil 35 25
Christian Eriksen 34 22
David Silva 26 21

Despite making fewer assists, Ozil has been responsible for creating more opportunities for team-mates than any other player:

Premier League chances created since start of 2015/16

Player Chances created
Mesut Ozil 318
Christian Eriksen 294
Kevin De Bruyne 268
Eden Hazard 209

However, while their Premier League influence is comparable, their League Cup records are not.

De Bruyne missed City's 2016 final win over Liverpool with a knee injury, however, he has a notable return of seven goals and four assists from nine appearances in the tournament since joining the club. He scored in both legs of this season's semi-final win against Bristol City - his first start and goals in the League Cup for two years.

Mesut Ozil started Arsenal's 2-1 semi-final second-leg win against Chelsea on January 24 - which was actually his full debut in the competition. He had previously been limited to a single substitute appearance, against the same opposition in October 2013.

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 27: Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City is seen during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Manches
Image: De Bruyne has been a key figure for Premier League leaders Man City

The World Cup winner's seemingly inevitable involvement from the start on Sunday, coupled with his first League Cup start in the previous round, suggests at a revision of priorities from Arsene Wenger as he chases more silverware.

Despite the perceived crisis that has absorbed Arsenal over recent seasons, another journey up Wembley's 107 steps on the trophy presentation route this weekend would be their fourth major honour in the last five seasons, more than any other side in that period.

Major trophies since start of 2013/14

Team Trophies
Arsenal 3 (3 FA Cups)
Chelsea 3 (2 PL titles, 1 League Cup)
Man City 3 (1 PL title, 2 League Cups)
Man Utd 3 (1 FA Cup, 1 Europa League, 1 League Cup)
Leicester 1 (1 PL title)

The League Cup remains the only domestic trophy that has eluded Arsenal during the Wenger era: in fact no side have lost more League Cup finals in the competition's history than Arsenal (five - twice under Wenger).

City have been crowned winners in two of the previous four years, and are looking to win the first silverware of Pep Guardiola's reign - which would end the longest trophy drought of his managerial career.

The Spaniard has won in nine of his previous 10 finals in major competitions: the silver lining for Arsenal being that Ozil was in the starting XI during his sole cup final defeat - Real Madrid's 1-0 Copa del Rey final win against Barcelona in 2011.

Whether Arsenal pull off another Wembley upset, or City win their first silverware for two years, you would be surprised if the winners were not owing a great deal of gratitude to their star playmaker.

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