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Arsenal face Manchester City in the League Cup final at Wembley on Sunday, and Mesut Ozil could give them a major fitness boost ahead of the clash.
The 29-year-old is expected to sit out the Europa League encounter with Ostersunds on Thursday as he is struggling with an illness, albeit the Gunners have a commanding 3-0 lead from the away leg and shouldn’t particularly need him anyway.
However, they will be desperate to see him line-up against Pep Guardiola’s side, as Arsene Wenger will want as close to a fully-fit squad to select from as possible in order to give his side the best chance of winning a piece of silverware this season.
It’s good news for Arsenal fans too, as the veteran tactician sounded optimistic that he would have the German playmaker available when speaking to the media on Wednesday.
“Today was the first session,” he is quoted as saying by The Mirror.
“I would certainly have played him but because he was sick, he will have to work hard and he will not be involved against Ostersund. He should be OK for Sunday.”
Ozil has scored five goals and provided seven assists in 24 appearances so far this season, although he only made his first appearance in the Carabao Cup in second leg of the semi-final victory over Chelsea.
Nevertheless, with the experience that he possesses and the class in the final third that he can offer, he’ll be pivotal along with the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan in trying to find a breakthrough against the Premier League leaders.
Guardiola will be looking for a response after being knocked out of the FA Cup by Wigan earlier this week, and with his quadruple hopes now over, he’ll hope at least to remain in the hunt for a treble.