Arsenal named their 25-man Premier League squad last week, and the major controversy came with Mesut Ozil’s omission.
New signing Thomas Partey made the cut, but Mikel Arteta decided to leave out Ozil and Sokratis Papastathopoulos in a couple of big decisions.
They’re both experienced performers, but now face months on the sidelines as Arteta moves on without the duo.
Whilst many fans aren’t too fussed about Sokratis, the continued exile of Ozil has left some supporters hugely disappointed.
The 32-year-old has spent more than seven years at Arsenal, racking up 44 goals and 77 assists in 254 games for the club.
Despite Arsenal lacking creativity at the moment, Arteta has decided to go without Ozil, who has been struggling for top form for some time now.
Some Arsenal fans have been asking Guillem Balague about the situation given how well he knows Arteta, asking whether his absence could be politically-driven.
Balague suggests that Arteta would be a totally different person to the man he has known for so long if that was the case, and simply believes that Ozil hasn’t taken his chances when he has played and may bring bad atmosphere at the club.
“I don’t believe that,” said Balague. “If that was the reason, all the years that I’ve spoken to Mikel Arteta would have been in vain, all the years since he was a player and now manager…it’s a different person if he does it for political reason, he’s not the person I thought he was, which says to me that it’s not for political reasons, it’s for sporting reasons.”
“I think when he has been given the opportunity, he hasn’t taken it, in training I’m sure – , because that’s when you really show your worth – I’m sure he isn’t doing that. Sometimes teams have got one or two players that affect the atmosphere, and it’s best to get rid of it,” he added.
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