Some Arsenal fans on Twitter are urging Mikel Arteta to bring Mesut Ozil back into the fold.
The former Germany international hasn’t kicked a ball for Arsenal in a competitive game since before the season was suspended in March.
Ozil, who turned 32 today, was briefly in the picture toward the beginning of Project Restart, making the bench on a couple of occasions.
But Arsenal boss Arteta never used him and then came a mysterious back injury that kept him out for the rest of the summer.
The former Real Madrid playmaker had a brief cameo against Aston Villa in a pre-season friendly, but it was a false dawn because Arteta hasn’t included him in a senior squad since then.
An omission from his Europa League squad by Arteta cast further doubt on Ozil’s future at the Emirates Stadium.
But Arsenal’s official Twitter account acknowledged the enigma’s birthday today and here’s how some fans of the North London club responded on social media:
Arsene Wenger, who signed Ozil for Arsenal seven years ago, said this week that the situation was a complete waste – and it is.
In terms of talent and ability, nobody else in Arteta’s squad comes close to Ozil. Then again, Arteta has said from day one that he’ll be picking his team based on the players’ application in training.
So we can only deduce that the club’s £350,000-a-week player hasn’t been pulling his weight behind the scenes.
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