Well, there seems to be a sense of Déjà vu for Mesut Ozil at Fenerbahce, just over a year after he was discarded by Mikel Arteta at Arsenal.
German journalist, Raphael Honigstein, has shared that history is ‘repeating itself’ for the World Cup winner because it seems as though Fenerbahce want to ‘get rid’ of Ozil, as he told BBC Radio 5 Live Sport.
By the time Arteta had become comfortable in the Arsenal hotseat after being appointed as manager in December 2019, he started to do things his way, and his way only, which for some, didn’t sit well.
One of those calls included the 40-year-old discarding Ozil from the club’s 25-man Premier League squad, despite the Gunners desperately craving that creative spark in the middle of the park, at the time.
In the end, Ozil parted ways with the club during the January transfer window of 2021, headed for Turkey and signed for his boyhood club in Fenerbahce.
But whilst some may have criticised Arteta for his actions towards the former Real Madrid star, well, hindsight is a lovely thing and it’s putting the Arsenal coach in a good light here.
A couple of months ago, Ozil was suspended by Fenerbahce, and despite the change of manager with Jorge Jesus coming in, it seems as though he wants no part of the 33-year-old, European expert, Honigstein, shared that this current situation has ‘echoes’ of what happened in north London under Arteta.
“This goes back to March when he was suspended by the club without really giving any reason,” said Honigstein. “He had fallen out with the coach, Ismail Kartal.
“There was the hope with the new manager coming in, Jorge Jesus, that there would be a reprieve for Mesut. But Jesus had his unveiling a couple of days ago and said ‘nothing has changed. Mesut is still suspended. Fenerbahce is my main priority, not any player’.
“That speculation has now risen because he doesn’t follow Fenerbahce on social media, but he did write saying that speculation about him leaving was wrong, that he is waiting patiently and that Fenerbahce is his boyhood love and he wants to play for them. And he hopes things will change.
“It certainly looks that way (Fenerbahce want to get rid of Ozil). It’s an echo of what happened at Arsenal when, in the end, he wasn’t even featured anymore in the squad. He was effectively told to leave by Arteta, after a difficult spell under Emery.
“The situation seems to be repeating itself. It’s a shame considering what a talent Mesut has been. But it seems as though he has lost the appetite for football.”
ARTETA WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG
From day dot, Arteta has proven to be a marmite-like figure at Arsenal and he is dividing opinion, not just with his own supporters.
The words ‘trust the process’ have been bandied about quite a lot, and after missing out on Champions League football last season, those critics find those words hard to believe.
What probably hasn’t helped the former midfielder’s cause is the fact that he has made some tough, yet ruthless calls during his time at the club.
From booting out Ozil, which has now been proven to be correct because of what is happening with him in Turkey, plus it’s Emile Smith Rowe who has come through since then.
And, most recently, his call to allow Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to leave in January. Did Arteta cut off his nose to spite his face?
Well, in 12 months’ time, if the Gabon star is having troubles at Barcelona and Arsenal are going well in north London, then that’s another player Arteta would have been proven right by, but only time will tell.
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