Arsenal hammered Liverpool 4-1 at the Emirates Stadium in the Premier League on Saturday.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has explained to the club’s official website why he did not play Mesut Ozil for the entire 90 minutes against Liverpool on Saturday.
Germany international playmaker Ozil started the Premier League clash at the Emirates Stadium in North London, but he was substituted in the 73rd minute.
Wenger has now revealed that he also wanted to take off Chile international Alexis Sanchez, but he went with Ozil instead.
“He (Alexis Sanchez) played two games with Chile, Ozil played two games with Germany and I could see that their legs had gone a little bit with 25 minutes to go,” the Frenchman told Arsenal’s official website.
“I had a decision to make between him or Ozil and I subbed Ozil because I felt he was in danger of being injured. Alexis did fight very hard until the end.”
It was a prudent decision from Wenger, as former Real Madrid star Ozil has only recently returned from a long-term injury.
While former Barcelona ace Sanchez has shown signs of fatigue in recent months, Ozil is the one who needs to be carefully monitored at the moment in terms of fitness.
Arsenal had virtually won the game against Liverpool at the halfway stage anyway, having taken a 3-0 lead heading into the second period.
The 4-1 win against 10-man Liverpool means that the Gunners are now second in the Premier League table with 63 points from 31 matches, seven points behind leaders Chelsea, who have a game in hand.
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