It appears that Mesut Ozil isn’t going to take his omission from the squad against Man City lying down.
The silky attacking midfielder didn’t even make the nine-man subs bench for the trip to the Etihad Stadium which hinted at Mikel Arteta’s strength of character in the Gunners’ managerial role.
According to The Sun, Ozil is on a whopping £350,000 per week, and therefore leaving him out has to be considered a brave decision from the Spaniard.
However, the player took to Twitter on Thursday afternoon and left what can only be interpreted as a coded message to the Arsenal hierarchy.
No matter what … #M1Ö @Arsenal pic.twitter.com/WFmNoxpGBc
— Mesut Özil (@MesutOzil1088) June 18, 2020
A picture of him holding the Arsenal club badge was accompanied by three simple words; ‘No matter what…’
Having also tagged the official Arsenal account into the tweet, it could be said that his intentions are clear, though quite what Arteta will make of it is anyone’s guess.
On his day, Ozil can be a game-changer, though his influence has often been diluted in games and perhaps the club are also sending him a timely message. Shape up or ship out.