Paul Merson has warned Mikel Arteta on Sky Sports News (21/10/20 at 2:10 pm) that he has just taken a ‘big gamble’ by omitting Mesut Ozil from Arsenal’s Premier League squad.
The outspoken TV pundit admitted that he was left ‘shocked’ by the decision given the abundance of ‘talent’ Ozil has in his locker.
Well, Ozil has now been asked to clear that locker, and a career which has seen him reach the heights of all heights in the footballing-mad world of Brazil, he is now seemingly not good enough to be a part of a group of players at London Colney that finished eighth in England’s top-flight last season.
During his hay-day, Merson was a dazzler and someone who could do something out of the ordinary and he admitted that it’s a ‘shame’ that the Ozil situation has come to such a solution.
“The lad has got talent, he is an absolute talent,” Meson told Sky Sports. “To keep him out of the squad is a big gamble by Arsenal. Big gamble.
“He’s on massive wages. There is no doubting that. He gets fortunes. I am surprised. It shocked me. When I was told he was going to be left out of the squad, I was shocked if I am being totally honest.
“I am one of his biggest fans because when he is on song, he can play. You have to remember, just before lockdown, he was playing. So, for him to come back, not be in the team and not even get in a squad place, it’s surprising.
“I don’t know whether Arsenal are trying to make a stand where they go ‘we just want him out now and we want him rid’ and just write him off. I don’t know. That’s the only reason I can think of – it’s a shame, it’s a sad day for Arsenal and a sad day for him.”
Moulded under the stewardship of Pep Guardiola, it isn’t a surprise that Arteta is a very demanding coach, who perhaps prioritises more what you do without the ball than what you do with it.
And even though Arteta is well aware of the creativity Ozil can bring to the table, this decision clearly stems beyond what the former Real Madrid man can do on the field of play.
Whilst Ozil hasn’t exactly ripped it up during these last few years, it’s not like he’s played for a team that has been steaming forward like a bullet train in recent times.
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