I have been saying for some time that Unai Emery was gambling with his Arsenal future by phasing out Ramsey and Ozil, so our defeat in the Europa League could prove a turning point in his reign. Some Gooners have defended our manager for not selecting based on reputation but the argument has never been that Ozil hasn’t any flaws, more a question mark about were those replacing him any better? How many away games have the team been lacking any creativity? Yet we are meant to believe a man with most assists since arriving in North London doesn’t tactically suit some matches.
The League is one thing, knockout football is another. Mess around with our most realistic route to get back into the Champions League and suddenly the boss’s employers will ask questions? Stan Kroenke has a right to ask if a team can’t break down minnows, what’s someone on a reported 350,000 pounds a week doing back in the UK?
It makes next Thursday massive for Emery. He may have to swallow his pride and admit he was wrong about Ozil. Continuing to pick Iwobi over him is cutting your nose off to spite your face. I read on social media some Gooners point out that this remains Arsene Wenger’s squad. With that excuse, Emery can never do anything wrong.
This wasn’t the Champions of Spain we lost to, it was the best team in Belarus. But if you want to make comparisons? We beat the same team 4-2 last year with our fringe players. Also, I don’t think Wenger would field a back 5, 2 DMs, and drop Ramsey and Ozil in a must-win situation. Emery knows we need goals in the 2nd leg. Failure to advance will go down as one of our most humiliating results. If that happens while our best player sits at home, that’s a sackable offence.
Ozil, who has made sure to send out photos of himself fit and training, will realise that Emery’s lost huge credit with Gooners and might yet win this power battle…
Dan Smith
Would be nice to see him back in the team ,I mean we can’t do any worse surely with him in it .
Honeymoon periods over now for emery ,all these little excuses some fans on here keep using are pathetic tbh .
This is his team now ,blame lies with him .we will see at the beginning of next season just what kind of manager he his ,does he have ambition or is he a yes man manager.
We will probably win the next leg easily and go through but last night was a new low for this club .
Ozil and co should be able to crush BATE at home, as what they did to Ludogorets and Qarabag
I predict we would see the sleek passes from him again as what we saw at the Leicester City game and the worship will continue
Or we could stick with you’re favourite iwobi and look sh1t every Match
You need to stop being so aggressive or you will be in trouble…
How’s that agressive he’s had his opinion I’ve countered it with it’s mine ,if you don’t want me to post on here then I will stop all together and just read the posts
Didn’t realise my posts were so different from everybody else’s .
Pat…
I’ll take the trouble.
If gotnoidea ever talks to me I will rip into him and I’ll make Dan look like a saint.
Too many people are gobsmacked at him, how he belittles a gooner and Arsenal fans, he is a traitor to the badge.
What Dan said wasn’t aggressive, it was blunt and full of frustration, gotanidea deserves the warning for antagonizing gooners.
What gotanidea is doing can easily be called passive agressive so Dan was right. He did not offended gotanidea in any way. There are few people who are really here just to anoy or present themselves as smartest in the world. Both types come out of frustration or how I like to think – just being too young (if I want to be positive about it).
Iwobi plays LW and Ozil is CAM, how can you say he is responsible for keeping Ozil out of the squad? There is no vendetta as the writer is trying to suggest, just a simple case of a player not fitting into the coaches plan.
O think the coach doesntfot in players palm hasa no clue on the game hohehahe coach in swahili means know nothing hating everything
Well what do you expect when you put a team of water carriers out?
I have lost patience with Emery.He alone is the one that picks the team and he alone is responsible.
If he plays Ozil next week he is admiring he needs his creativity in the side.If he doesn’t play him he is saying Ozil has no place in his side.And let’s not forget that the player has longer on his contract than the manager does.
Some “slightly mature fans” on this site will remember us going out of the UEFA Cup in 1981 to Winterslag from Belgium.They were a team of amateurs.BATE going through will be a worst result than that and will rightly cost Emery his job
Relax, Arsenal would most likely have to field Ozil, due to the pressure from his fans and the media
Relax?Are you serious?Do you honestly believe that performance was acceptable.I certainly don’t.I will arrive home around 2.00am Saturday morning and will still be fuming at the way Emery feels he can set up a team to play as tightly as he does as STILL concede to a team that haven’t played a game for TWO MONTHS.
Do you know what BATE stands for?
BELERAUS AGRICULTURAL TRACTOR ESTABLISHMENT.(or something like that).
We basically lost to a team from a godforsaken town in a third world country that builds tractors.
FFS the sooner Emery realises this is by far and away the BIGGEST Club he has EVER MANAGED the sooner he will realise the standards he needs to reach.At the moment he is likely to be gone in the summer.And at the moment he will deserve the sack.
Let’s not give the manager the benefit of believing time in on his side.If he had been sat with us last night he would soon realise that the support is quickly turning against him.
We have become one dimensional with his insistence of freezing out the two players who could make a difference.
If he continues then he is in big trouble and will deserve exactly what he gets.
Phil, notice how all his comments on Ozil playing us because of the pressures from fans and not because the team needs him?.
In his world, the only reason Ozil will play any game is because the game would be an easier one and the pressure is getting to the coach.
I mean at least when someone want to make excuses, the excuse should make sense.
He has said a couple times that he was a Sanchez fanboy and wanted Sanchez to stay not Ozil, well guess who stayed and who left?? Noe guess who he doesn’t want close to the team?? It’s Ozil, to delude himself he has created this perfect illusion for himself that Iwobi is the perfect player for us who we need in every game, and the perfect winger for us, I mean he even mentioned we need a RW player like Iwobi.
Eddie-god help this Football Club If Iwobi is seen as the type of player that is needed.He is a squad player AT BEST.I agree Ozil’s form has not been consistent but has he ever been given a run of games under Emery?Especially when he is declared as fit?No he hasn’t.
Emery is going the same way with Ozil as Ricoh did with Ian Wright.And look who won that battle and who was out of a job at the end of his first season.
Ozil needs to be told he is in and he is staying in.
I don’t think Iwobi is the one keeping Ozil out of the team. Emery for whatever reason is doing this. i am definitely losing my patience with hime. The results are very unacceptable and he keep saying that he is happy with his team setup. I don’t know how someone that is progressive will be happy with the way the played yesterday.
Hey Phil,
thank you for the best sentence regarding “Ozil problem”….
“And let’s not forget that the player (Ozil) has longer on his contract than the manager does.”
Made me laugh a lot, great point, tnx!
Ornstein already said Ozil is being treated this way because the club wants him to leave at the of the season.. so there’s no point wondering why he’s not playing. While some of the leaders at the club are scared of giving Ozil the game time, because they feel and know if he starts performing well the fans won’t support selling him. So you can tell it’s business, cowardice from the board altogether.
Emery is the criminal for helping then achieve this nonsense at the detriment of his own image.
We all knew he said Ozil and Ramsey were part of his plans but things turned around and he’s still performing badly.
This talk of let him reshuffle the squad first is a lame excuse, like many mentioned on here, we won this game easily with our youngsters last season, and are you trying to tell me that the team Emery inherited is so bad that they can’t play football anymore? So bad that Huddersfield will dominate us? So bad that a team that hasn’t kicked a ball since Dec ran away with three points?
And constantly some of create excuses to cover this bullshít going on.
We’ve all said Ozil needs to be sold at the end of the season to free his wage and Ramsey is leaving, but use these guys to achieve what u want first then you can let em go!! But no stupidity is spreading inside the club not only greed and selfishness.
When will they start respecting our feelings and views concerning our club??
Eddie, you and I agree on a lot of things, but there is one point your making that I can’t agree on.
You say we’ve all said Ozil needs to be sold to free up his wages.
Why would we do that or want to do that?
He should/could be the player that UE builds his team around.
It doesn’t matter if he’s thirty , look what age our greatest player (in my memory) Dennis Bergkamp was when he retired, a mere 36 years old.
With the transfer prices going through the roof, what would it cost to find an equivalent replacement?
Plus, to get this phantom player, we will have to pay the going rate, which I suggest will certainly be in the current Ozil wage band.
If Ozil does play and helps UE’s Arsenal career, what would be the point of UE then shifting him out and agreeing to that anyway?
My belief is that UE has been put into an unenviable position by the club hierarchy, but is also complicit in using underhand tactics to get him to move.
If he plays him Thursday and we win…he only plays against easy, inferior teams.
If he plays him Thursday and we lose..UE is justified in dropping him, lazy player.
UE simply must give him a run in the team until the end of the season against every club, then he can prove his worth or not.
You make wonderful sense Ken. Play him b/c he creates chances, or play him to draw interest from other clubs. This freezing out benefits no one; team losing, fans angered, player stagnating, and manager looks bereft of ideas.
What team will bid for player that hasn’t played? If he’s sold Arsenal will get taken to the cleaners again. This stubborn streak of Emery’s is vexing, and against the fabric of the Arsenal i came to know and love.
Not like playing Ozil hurts the team; we struggle anyway, and Ozil doesn’t need to defend with 6 or 7 defenders behind him every game.
Then again, why use common sense; we are Arsenal FC after all.
“You say we’ve all said Ozil needs to be sold to free up his wages.
Why would we do that or want to do that?”
Ken, I know what Ozil brings to this team, I know his worth but we need to let him go so the man can go enjoy his football elsewhere.
He’s not appreciated enough over here, according to most people, he has done nothing for this club.
Let him go so our new players can keep running around while playing like stoke
As usual a lot of good points made Ken. When Ozil was given his new contract I made the point that it would cost the club a total of around £70m over the four years or lose him on a free. However, it would have probably cost nearly that amount to buy a replacement in this inflated market PLUS four years wages.
If the club hierarchy are trying to push him out they should be ashamed of themselves and so should Emery for complying. My take is that they are deliberately trying to humiliate him in order to make him quit hence the bizarre captaincy followed by benching him and picking Dennis Suarez (who had been with the club for about 10 minutes) ahead of him. Then not playing him at all.
By the way I agree with you regarding Dennis Bergkamp a true great and the best I’ve seen in an Arsenal shirt.
Gents, that is surely the only sensible conclusion that we can make from this situation.
EDDIE, I see what you are thinking now and I agree with your sentiments, but that’s hurting our club and I really don’t know where the ethos we all proudly accepted was “The Arsenal Way” is going.
DURAND, is this kind of face off between player and club something that kronkie instigates over there in the USA, as it surely must be eminating from the very top?
If it is, how did it end up?
ANDREW E, and wouldn’t you have thought Gazidis and kronkie would have done those sums as well? Of course they did and furthermore accepted it.
Those fans who are so incensed by what he is earning / taking should stop using this as a reason to vilify the man.
He accepted what was offered by the owner and CEO of the club.
The treatment of this man is disgraceful and well done to Ozil for being so professional in his response.
Dennis Bergkamp, Highbury, The Invincibles, still brings shivers down my spine. I’ve been acccused of wanting the past to come back…with those memories, YES PLEASE I’ll let the younger guns have todays offering from the Emirates any time.
That’s why I want EU to succeed, just so we can have that feeling once again at least. What say you Gentlemen?
Wonder the beef managers create with players. See Solari with Isco, Unai with Ozil and Carlos Tevez was once in the same situation. Really its not good for football
Jerry I may also want to add a few more examples. Sarri vs Hazard at Chelsea, Mou vs Pogba, Conte vs Costa/Luiz and a couple of years Mou had another player ‘revolt’ at Chelsea. I feel Emery is also finding himself in such a situation with Ozil. In all those instances the performances of the teams were disastrous. He has to find a solution and make good use of Ozil, otherwise he will be history in a short space of time.
Good point, but one thing is very important:
If Emery left Ozil in London and we won nice and easy against Bate, I would say O.K. I was happy when Wenger was sacked and nevermind I like Ozil, I respect Emerys decision.
After that I would always have an option to follow some other club Ozil will play for in the future like Ramsey lovers will follow Juventus (watching Ramsey on the bench or injured).
Problem is that with current money situation Emery will not have a chance to change a team like Guardiola did at ManCity, and will never have a chance to buy a player like Ozil or Auba… and also there is a new question looming above the Emirates: Is Emery good enough to push us in top 4 and beyond?
There is not such a thing as power battle. The sole battle was the one between the american and the uzbek. Now that the war is over managers, players and fans are meer spectators.
Bring whoever you want. Play who ever you like the end result will always be the same. Its a matter of motivation to do good and such a thing is non existant at arsenal.
Emery has a 2 year conctract and i will be not suprised in seeing him gone when a better option for him comes around.
The club is toxic and not worth worring to much about it.
Ks-gunner?Thoroughly agree and that is why I am out of here!
– Ozil = happy on social media supporting the team / working hard in training / getting well compensated for his services each week / life is good.
– Ozil’s agent = quite / says his client is not going anywhere / getting his share after his client got a great deal / life is good.
– Emery = tired of the Ozil talk / “happy” with the player / wants to work with everyone / still in his first season and assessing everything at the club / life is good.
– Arsenal fans or Ozil’s fans – divided opinions / eating off media speculation / not sure which Ozil would show up if played again / life in a limbo.
They can only be one winner in such a battle and we will all find out in the summer. If the club do not value Ozil they will ship him off even at a loss, if not he will be played when the coaching staff deems it fit.
“– Arsenal fans or Ozil’s fans –”
We are all Arsenal fans.
Disgusting that you would put a false divide like that up.
Kinda idiotic thing to do, I can’t help but think you are a massive idiot.
Midkemma, I smiled at your comments , while also agreeing with you and, strange as it seems, Pablo’s basic theme.
Isn’t this the way with Arsenal fans on here?
Your either on “one side or the other”.
I noticed earlier that Quantic Dream has told me I want Emery out and been looking for any excuse to criticise him…where do these ideas come from?
Because I disagree with Ue’s decisions, I want him to fail and yet I travel to nearly every home game, spend my hard earned money for what?
Oh yeah…sitting next to fellow gooners shouting out “Come on Arsenal lose the game so that we can get rid of Unai Emery”?
I thought we’d left that childish thinking behind us when AW left, but it’s still with us I’m afraid.
Ozil’s fans can relax because he would most likely play against BATE, if he doesn’t call in sick again. That home game should be easy and Arsenal would be forced to use Ozil due to the pressure from Ozil’s fans and media
However, the club seem to try to sell him out, as what Ornstein said. That’s why it’s better to prepare the other players to replace Ozil and Ramsey
Actually Iwobi is the perfect candidate as the main CAM. He is no pushover, tall, quick and possess a good set of skills
And has no brain
His face might not look as bright and handsome as Ozil’s, but he has been producing some excellent through balls and dribbles
Gotanaidea
your comparison of iwobi and Ozil lacks rationale
Ozil has quality and more medals than iwobi will ever see let alone win
Iwobi is average AT BEST
I agree with you
He can call in sick again??? Omg so are you a Dr? Auba was sick too…. but nobody mentions that. Ozil was back in training yet Unai decided to leave him at home! What’s the betting he’ll give him the arm band next thursday then drop him completely against Southampton (due to tactics)
He doesn’t pay attention to reality, let him live with his delusional Iwobi FC, he isn’t a gooner!
?
“Actually Iwobi is the perfect candidate as the main CAM. He is no pushover, tall, quick and possess a good set of skills”
Iwobi as the perfect player to be our CAM??
??? Jesus F**king Christ!! I’ve seen it all on this blog, the good the bad, the ugly and the crazy, geez I’ve seen it all on here??
Well that’s alright then Eddie, as long as Iwobi is in the team, we’ll be fine…
He’s no pushover? Do you see how many times he gives the ball away or is dispossessed….
He possesses a good set of skills?? Care to enlighten me gotanidea as to what they are?
He can dribble (not from his mouth) well if this is the future of Arsenal…. then it’s looking pretty bleak
Would you pick Alex Iwobi or Robert Pires on the wing? When you come up with an answer you’ll realise how far we’ve dropped as a team. Iwobi would not have made the bench!!!
??
Admin, you should be editing comments as mentioned above.hurts religious sentiments. Its only a game of football, why do we take the Lord God’s name in vain ?
Hope sense prevails when commenting on football, abuse of religion has to condemned.
Thank you
Ozil fans… We are Arsenal fans. We want to see Arsenal create more than three freaking chances.
Just cause you are happy with Iwobi who is lacking in every department apart from effort, it doesn’t mean we all are, a lot of us are getting sick of watching him kill our attacks.
Iwobi is not a number 10, only a complete fool would think Iwobi makes a good number 10 when we have Ozil on the bench.
Tell us all how many assists Iwobi has compared to Ozil over the past 4 seasons. Key chances created? Any stat other than running around like a headless chicken? Iwobi is better def and effort but he is not a number 10.
A number 10 needs to have ideas, have you seen the clueless expression on Iwobi face when he gets forward with the ball? Have you seen the dead ends he runs into? Iwobi is a decent AM, he isn’t a great winger as he can’t whip in crosses with his left foot and he plays poor on the right.
You are not an Arsenal fan, I have decided, you are not a gooner. You are a Iwobi fan.
Neither of them is winning this battle. Ozil coming across as a molly-coddled lazy superstar. Emery is coming across as a Moyes like manager who can’t manage the big guys.
They deserve each other
emery is making this club about himself. he had similar issues at PSG with neymar, verrati and at a point thiago Silva who he dropped against Barcelona when they were leading the first leg 4-1 . a game they would eventually capitulate in a embarrassing fashion and would have been the reason he was replaced
arsenal as a team is void of creativity
with just a refusal to accept ozil or ramsey should be starting , it’s as if he is trying to prove he is right and it’s not working
how does he expect arsenal to sell ozil when he isn’t playing?
mkytarian should not be starting any games
there are a lot of fans who are saying this is wengers team . however they seem to forget a few things. arteta was favourite for the job , his demands were to sell some of the current players as he knew they were not good enough and a say in transfers
emery on the other hand stated the first team squad didn’t need changes – he impressed the board with his knowledge of the players and wasn’t bothered about transfers – obviously the board chose him .
as for his the Denis suarez loan it’s beyond bizarre when we clearly needed a defender
by playing ozil or ramsey we could have had a good chance to reach top 4 but there is only one man to blame for that and it’s emery
“emery is making this club about himself” – The media is. Its overhyping the situation. Look at what is actually happening for yourselves. Most of the missed games were through injury and if you look at the training pictures videos etc, there is no sign of Ozil there.
So what if Ozil didn’t play in this game. We shouldn’t even need him to beat them in the first place. We created good chances last night but we just didn’t take them.
Bate didn’t do anything the whole game. Cech and the defense barely had anything to do last night. It was just one of those one off games. We will smash them the next game with or without ozil. It doesn’t matter.
Jayjulias08, Bate didn’t do anything the whole game?
They didn’t have to..three shots to contend with..corners that never wentpast their first defender.. and the final insult, they actually beat us comfortably.
jayjulias08, Arsenal didn’t do anything the whole game!
And the end result would be an overpaid, overrated player continuing to milk money from the club? Who would wan that result besides for Ozil fanboys? The battle isn’t much of a battle anyways. Emery has the board behind him, and Arsenal are clearly finished with his services and regret their contract offer. Ozil does not have the guts to fight for his place anyways. Idk how long Emery will be here, but Ozil will not be the reason he goes.
STFU with the BS Ozil fanbois.
We are Arsenal supporters.
We like to see more than 3 shots.
If you like boring football then you fck off and support Jose.
All Mesut Ozil has to do is stay put, show up at training, and not take a pay cut to see the back of Unai Emery. If you want to see how this will play out, there is a fairly recent model available to Arsenal fans with even moderate memories.
Remember Niklas Bendtner? He was signed to a big contract off some good performances then fell off mostly becuase he seems to be absolutely crazy. Arsenal were constantly going to be rid of him. He stayed until the end of his contract, even after going out on loan to virtually every team in Europe, from Juventus to Rosenborg.
Ozil is not Niklas Bendtner, but there are parallels, not in the players’ relative abilities, but in how these situaitons play out. Ozil makes £18 million per year. Fans and seemingly current Arsenal management think it is too much. They get the brilliant idea that they can get rid of the player by not letting him play.
It is a tactic that does work, but usually when it does the time left on the deal is short, the money involved much less, and the player is either at the beginning of his career and unwilling to antagonize the team or at the end when he is hanging on to his career based on profesisonalism. None of those situaitons apply.
Ozil has years left on his deal, he just signed a four year extension, remember? He is also making £18 million per season. Who in their right mind walks away form £18 million to earn a third as much at a smaller club in Italy, Germany, or Spain? Ozil is not at the end of his career or the beginning. He is in his prime. He is not a middle-ability player, he’s a player Cristiano Ronaldo considers the best #10 in the world. He is not someone trying to make a reputation or convince he can still play despite recent injuries, or a guy trying to get signed to one last contract because he’s a good guy in the dressing room; he is an established star in the middle of a career where he has missed relatively few games to (real not faked by the manager) injury.
Unai Emery and the other front office management are working hard to turn Arsenal, a club Arsene Wenger kept in the top four for 22 straight years, into Valencia or Sevilla. There is this fiction being fostered that through magic and genius Arsenal, now that the useless Arsene Wenger is gone, can magically find players that will make Arsenal title contenders in for £10 million per year. That’s not what happens. You buy cheap, you get middling ecept every once in a while you pull off a coup thorugh luck or circumstance. N’Golo Kante, Riyad Mahrez, Dimitri Payet are examples of this, but the clubs that signed those players won a single (incredible an historic) title and are now mired in mid-table. You do not build top four teams on the cheap. Period.
Arsene Wenger was a master of finding good players, fitting them into a system, and making the whole better than the parts all while playing attractive football. Unai Emery and company appear to be masters at taking good players, humilating them, lying to the public, and making the team less than the sum of its parts.
Someone called Emery the Spanish Tony Pulis. I think that under rates Pulis. tony Pulis was a master at taking relegation teams and slowing the game down, making it ugly, and putting pressure on opponents to pen up, to keep his teams in the top flight despite rosters that were not worthy of being there. Unai Emery inherited a team that, for the most part, finished in the top four every season but one while they were together, and reducing it by inept management, questionable talent acquisition, and poor financial planning into a team that could end up being managed by Tony Pulis.
your assessment on the Ozil/Bendtner scenario is so perfect and spot on..I agree with a lot of your statements though I believe he’s better than Tony Pulis, they can’t be in the same sentence. His problem is he’s trying to turn this lovely club Arsene shaped so well into Sevilla. Having problems with players, he has not even a single excuse or answer as to why he left Ozil at home.
I wanted Arsene Wenger out, I still believe him leaving is the right thing, I just don’t believe Emery is the man, how Arsene Wenger won us those three FA cups and constant ticket to the UCL now seems like it was an Herculean task, which he accomplished.
I’ve constantly questioned why can’t we attack efficiently and still we cant defend.
To the people who keeps creating excuses and reasons for us to be this poor, are you saying Ozil can’t hack the pl anymore after winning 3 FA Cups and qualifying for the cl on numerous occasions with the likes of Coq, Flamini nd Arteta behind him???
if you can’t answer me with a straight and rational answer don’t bother trying to answer, keep your sentiment away from my post.
At least Wenger made these average players played good football and still won the FA cup thrice. I don’t know what we are becoming under Emery
paul35mm, where have you been?
A brilliant post that gladdens my heart, full of facts and realism that even gives the perfect comparision soon to unfold.
Ozil has already rejected PSG, a club that just humiliated Utd and are set for the CL quarter finals, while watching us lose to a factory club in the europa league. WHY?
Because of all the things you say about his contract and salary, but more importantly, his commitment to our club.
Read what he says about us, the fans, the club, his life in London and his willingness and determination to prove himself.
Pllease make sure you come back on here and give those who condemn him for not giving 100%, no backbone and mentally feeble, something to read carefully and digest fully.
Hello EH,
it’s me again, dnt be nervous… 🙂 cos I just want to say to you and Admin that I agree with you 100 % on your replay to brilliant Paul35mm.
No need for any sanctions…. yet :)))
#afraid of london’s sevilla too
Age 30 is not in the middle of a top level midfielders career. That is simply not true. To be in the middle he would need to be still playing well into his forties. Nor is Ozil in his prime. If he were he would be picked. Nor did Wenger keep Arsenal in the top four for twenty years . It was twenty and then they fell badly away for the last two years. Three mistakes and made because the whole tenor of your post shows you to be still wedded to Wenger so you bend the truth or break it. You also, oddly, claim that “Wenger was a master at finding good players, fitting them into a system and making the whole better than the parts”. What about the so called defence then? He never bought (paid money) a top centre half apart from Kos. Campbell was brought on a free and the rest of his buys at CB were way substandard. Even Toure and Gallas were way over hyped. His long list of dud CB ‘s were a disgrace, as was his refusal to even attempt replacing Gilberto , except with poor players. It took the new regime mere days to find Torreira by comparison.
What about Viera, Petit, Overmars, Henry, Anelka, Pires, Ljungberg, Fabregas, Van Persie, Campbell (free or not he was a coup) Lehmann, Gilberto, Edu, Sagna, Lauren, Rosicky etc.? Come on Jon give the man some credit.
Andrew I did SPECIFY defenders. I accepted Campbell was good but cost NO money . Of your others, only Sagna was a true defender , plus Lauren who was imo far better than Sagna , whom I thought overhyped by most. Lauren was also a midfielder converted and was one of the very few exceptions Wenger ever brought in who were real top class defenders. My main point about WENGER LARGELY IGNORING DEFENCE SINCE 2008 IS VERY VALID.
Outfield DEFENDERS too, thus excluding the excelent Lehmann.
Totally agree well thought out point of view
Bravo Paul35mm,
great post!
the bourd has drone its line of not needing expensive players so tell me which cup will easily come Arsenal way when we are now looking for fringe player to add when the squad needs revival. Just let Ozil take his decieson either siton the bench and eat his money or look else where to move on with his carrier.
The present generation of football fans are not very patient, they watch other teams more because of the amount of games available on tv and social media, and immediately want their team to be as good or even better,they want excitement, fun, want to be able to raise their heads up when arguing among their mates, spend more money than before so rightfully will demand more of their team. Man U got rid of Jose because he was affected the overall business and elevation level Man U enjoys outside England and immediately their shears improves and the gain was there to see. So if Arsenal Football Club is comfortable with where the club is heading why should I have a sleepless night. Neither Emery owns the club nor Ozil. Everyone was hired to do job and if the board is happy with the results then everything is FINE.
Who would want to buy Özil when hes not playing at all? Sense, it makes none!
How is it ozil’s fault last night. He wasn’t in the team and emery was the one who made a team selection.His team failed and he should be held accountable for how his team played which was horrible to watch.
Ozil is the best player we have ,is the most famous,has won more medals and has a huge following on social media,surely the club must use that,United were worried that my loose Pogba and his 30 million followers if he leaves ,Ozil has double that and the club not using it,should be our poster boy
Regarding his defending ability not all eleven players need to defend we are Arsenal and we have a philosophy,we play attaching football and we should never park the bus
Our displays of recent are embarrassing,AW will never offer this kind of football and people who go to the Emirates ,& Wembley in recent years will know what I mean
The fans at the Emirates love Ozil the keyboard warriors don’t but is very different watching football in a ground than in a tv
Same applies to Ramsey
Also I think that Iwobi is talented but st least a year away from being the finished article
The trouble some of Ozil’s fan club have is in failing to allow some Gooners a different opinion. Those of us who cannot stand ALL lazy players and for this reason , ONLY,want Ozil to leave, are fully behind the obvious policy of freezing him out. We PUT THE LONGER TERM GOOD BEFORE THE SHORTER TERM. My opinion is that Ozil has long shown his complete inability to change games, EXCEPT once in a blue moon. Some on here see what they want to see and long for these one in a blue moon days to become regulars. I also used to be the same. But I learned better; simply by watching experience. I have long thought him a luxury player we cannot realistically afford to keep indulging and paying all that wage. We NEED TO SHIFT HIM AND ASAP. I FULLY ACCEPT THAT IT IS NOT AN ETHICAL WAY TO GET HIM OUT, BY JUST NOT PICKING HIM. I DO. OF COURSE I DO. But as a realistic fan who ALWAYS puts the team first and always above ANY single players welfare and wealth, I agree with the club policy. IF anyone still thinks that much at all about PREM level football is ethical, then they are fooling themselves. Almost the whole thing is morally corruptly run from beginning to end and most of the players routinely cheat, as do agents, owners, directors, managers and fans usually either turn a blind eye, when it suits us, or even actively encourage the constant cheating. I have NEVER been afraid of being unpopular for seeing and writing the truth- as I see it. We are almost all hypocrites in life in varying degree. Almost all humans, including non sporting fans are. It is normal and it is being truthful to admit it. To accept and condone ALL THE PREM LEVEL WAGES GIVEN TO ALL MERE FOOTBALLERS IS TO CONDONE CORRUPTION. And to accept the cheating when it suits us, as almost all fans, anywhere, do all the time is also corruption. Wages are obscene , yet we mainly accept that and want still more paid to our own, often average players. THAT IS CORRUPT AND WE ALL, VERY MUCH MYSELF INCLUDED, ARE GUILTY. One thing I cannot stand is fooling myself. It is one of the few things I fear of which I have control over it. We all fear death but I have no control over that. I do fear self dishonesty, so i do not indulge it. I truly believe the reason so many on here cannot stand some of my comments is because they would rather continue as hypocrites but not also admit that fact to themselves. I am also a hypocrite but accept the fact and admit it BUT I do not admire it in myself. Nor in others. Far from! What the club are doing to freeze Ozil out is being done,IMO, because they fully recognise the immense mistake in awarding THAT contract and want him out. They also know he can choose to stay and just pick up the money weekly, which is exactly what he has been doing all along. They are treating him with contempt and he is doing the same to the club by NOT trying his hardest. It is self fooling to pretend otherwise and I will not do so. If you want ethics in football try amateur level. At least there is much left at THAT level. Hardly any at all at Prem level. Not just Arsenal either; we are no differnt from our rivals who are also corrupot to their core. When I say “corrupt” I of course mean MORALLY corrupt. They are very careful to stay just inside the legal line. Please do not tell me to stop supporting us if I DON’ T LIKE CORRUPTION ; I AM AS ADDICTED AND OBSESSED AS WE ALL ARE. THAT IS TRUTH, SELF TRUTH!
standing ovation from this little part of ireland ,jon fox. absolutely brilliantly written sir.
Thank you ger. But I write only to make, hopefully, at least some people think far deeper about the whole stinking cesspit that is top level football, esp the business of it ie MONEY. Always money , obscene filthy huge money ruins almost everything it touches. We all need money but nobody needs the sort of money that top players are able to demand, through their thieving agents and hold clubs and therfore us fans feet to the fire, to enrich themselves. Most of them care little or nothing for the club that pays them and play only for money and silverware. They are , mostly, happy to win that silverware at ANY club that pays them the most. We all know this monstrous con that dare not speak its name , and which goes on unchecked all the time. It is morally corrupt. There is no other honest way to say it. It stinks, frankly. i for one do not mind spelling out the truth, in thre hope that somewill pick up onit and fully realise whatb is happening beneath our own rather harmless “such an dsuch a player should be picked2 arguments. That is the most honest thing in football, because most of us are not tainted by huge wealth and our club support is HONEST. We fans are , mostly(since THERE ARE HONOURABLE PLAYERS AND EVEN ADMINISTRATORS, JUST NOWHERE NEAR ENOUGH) THE TRUE LIFEBLOOD AND HONOURABLE ONES. Yet we spend our time arguing among ourselves, instead of tackling those “thieving” (legally of course) from us. Sigh!!!
agreed jon.
Jon, you know that I’m not a fan of Ozil either. And although I am sad to see Tamsey go I’ve made my peace with it. Having said this, I think they are by far the two best midfielders we have and not playing them is a sin.
Ramsey gives his all in every game, he has already signed for Juve, let him play a dozen more games for Arsenal as of today he is a better player than Xhaka, Guen and Elneny the three players playing in his position.
Now Ozil is lazy I agree, and he doesn’t deserve his contract, but he is a world class door opener. And when teams park the bus, like Bate will, we have no one better to open that door.
Until Unai gets the players that will allow him to play his game, It’s stupid not to play these two players.
I would go back to his 4231 at home with Ozil and 433 away with Ramsey.
Play AMN and Sead as wingers and Jenkins and Monreal behind them as backs giving a balance to our wings. Iwobi, and Guendouzi wouldn’t make it to my starting line up at the moment but would be good as squad players.
I think Unai is not getting it right at the moment, but he will have my benefit of doubt until Jan 2020.
Ozil is not lazy (and Walcott is not a weed).
Then you and I differ Declan. As to the question which the article headline asks, my answer is NO.
To answer the headline my answer too is NO.
But then again I don’t believe the power struggle exists.
Whether you like Ozil or not, he will not be moving until his contract expires.In these circumstances surely it makes sense to give him the opportunity to contribute towards the cause.Emery may be carrying out “orders” from the Arsenal hierarchy but Ozil no doubt guided by his Agent is in the driving seat..Even if we were to let him go for a nominal sum of say £1 I very much doubt if any Club on the planet would be prepared to contemplate meeting his current salary so generously bestowed by Messrs Gazidis and Wenger.They have a lot to answer for but I bet they never lose any sleep over what has become a major issue for our Club.
I really don’t get what’s the whole fuss about? Did we wake up yesterday to discover that our current team is no longer good enough to bring us glory or trophies? Why the hate on Iwoby whatsoever? He’s at least giving his best for the team and has been our best midfielder lately… It is true that we luck creativity in the midfield, how many times have we been begging for Özil to be brought in, only to feel disappointed after a couple of games? It’s clear that Emery doesn’t see eye to eye with Özil, who has been doing nothing to justify his huge wage. We already said that this year is a transition year and that Emery needs time and a couple of transfer windows to form a squad for his style of play. It remains to be seen if the board is going to support him with the needed funds or if we are going to descent even more and become a middle table team with no ambitions at all.
Just read the comments from the last 3 articles and My goodness, The Ozil cult is as deluded as always. They still think a 30 year old Ozil will come good. They hate Emery because he refuses to accept a pampered primadonna like ozil.
Again, Ozil has been here for more than 5 years. We have finished in outside of Top 4 for 2 consecutive seasons with your prince charming as the poster boy. We finished (5th and 6th), we hardly won any away games last seasons, where has he been for the last 2 seasons?
They keep going ob about this mythical creativity that Ozil brings but the guy has only ever made more than 10 assists once in his whole Epl Arsenal career.
He did 19 assists, but the for the rest of the other 4 seasons he averages about 8 assists per season.
When was the last time that Ozil reached 10 assists in a season in the Epl at Arsenal? The guy is the epitome / poster child of the wenger and Arsenal of the last 6 seasons (weak, fragile, full of excuses, delusional etc).
Again can someone please explain this creativity that hardly ever makes 10 assists per season.
And Emery deserves criticism himself but not that criticism should not be linked to Ozil from the the Mesut fan-club.
So you’re happy with the team losing to a bunch of farmers who haven’t played in 2 months? Well that’s good then, because your wish is Unai’s command… no more Ozil – I hope you’ll be very happy with 3 shots on target every game & really poor performances! Yay!! Happy days!!!
Sue you clearly did not take hs point at all. A shame. This delusion that Ozil is a white knight who will ride to Arsnals rescue if ONLTY we play him every game and onlt centrally and put up with his half hearted play is a delusion. Hehas had, as GOONSTER correctl y said , fiveyears alreadt and his ngood games are hardly ever. his famn club need to see what is happening and accept the awful truth. He is NOT the player he was when with Real Madrid and winning the WC. HE IS MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY FRAIL AND IT IS DELUSIONAL NOT TO ADMIT THAT TO OUR SELVES. WE BADLY NEED TO SHIFT HIM FROM THE CLUB AND THE FREEZING TREATMENT HE IS GETTING FROM EMERY IS OUR BEST HOPE TO DO THIS. LAZY PLAYERS CAN NEVER BE THE ANSWER. Just admit it to yourself.
Well that is your opinion Jon – an opinion that I will never see eye to eye with!
As you very well know, we are all entitled to our own opinion, just because mine differs to yours, doesn’t make it right or wrong … I know you dislike Ozil, because every opportunity you get you tell us in great detail… tbh I don’t read them anymore as I know exactly what they’re going to say – He’s frail, lazy, depressed, weak, no better than Walcott, basically useless! That’s why you love Goonster’s posts so much because he feels the same as you
As you know I’m not a great lover of Lichtsteiner or Iwobi, but I don’t bring that up on every thread!
I don’t agree with what you’ve said so i’m sorry but I won’t be admitting anything to myself, just because you’ve said so… so if that makes me a non realist or a dullard then so be it!!
Sue. Ozil has excelled in his chosen profession. He is a championship league winner, a laliga winner, a World Cup winner, 3 Fa cups, 350 a week salary wow, what an achiever, some of the trophies a lot of big footballer will never win in their entire career. He is so good on the ball is country recognised him for honours. He is charitable. These guy is my ideal hero. NO ONE CAN TAKE HIS ACHIEVEMENTS AWAY FROM HIM. 350 a week for another 3 years!!! Awesome. ??????
Simply awesome! Now that they are mocking you, bunch of haters. I wonder what player they support cause it’s definitely not Arsenal Football Club.
Pat, love your analysis of the man’s achievements and he is still only 30!
When it was announced on here that Ramsey would be receiving £400,000 a week, lots of posts said “well done” etc etc.
Just looking at your summmary of what Ozil has achieved and compare it to Ramsey’s, the reported £350,000 seems quite a deal.
At least kronkie and gazidis thought so when they offered it to him.
Ozil has been accused of “bleeding the club dry”, but with the decision not to play him by UE, isn’t that even more of a sin?
What transfer fee would the club ask for in regards to a player that they deem as not good enough to play against teams like Bate, Cardiff and Huddersfield.
Why would any club be prepared to sign someone that UE sees as not good enough to oust the likes of Iwobi?
This is a scandal that will cost Arsenal dearly yet again in the transfer market, let alone the stench that will surround the club for the way they have treated one of their players.
To pay a player this reported £350,000 a week, sign him up for four further years and then treat him this way, makes our club the laughing stock of European football.
It doesn’t matter whether one rates Ozil or not, the ethics of this is bringing our club’s image to it’s knees, let alone it’s reputation.
I think everyone forgets Ozil was down to his last 5months of his contract & would’ve got this sorta wage anywhere he went as he was a bosman, same with Alexis but we did a swap to save face with Miki who has been awful also.
If we are playing with 5defenders then why is Ozil not creating in the no10 role behind the 2 of Laca/Auba as we have no wingers? Makes no sense when he’s the best player we have & his duties to defend would be limited with Torreira & Xhaka, 3cbs & 2wbs all behind him!
Emery is making mistakes but should be giving a season but the Ozil treatment is not the way this club runs… it’s a dirty sly tactic by Stan or whoever is calling the shots to get him out! Now he owns the club’s fans opinions don’t matter to him or ever will while he decides everything…
Maybe Unai isn’t the answer as at least under Wenger we played good football with worse players alot lot better than this pile of crap!!
@Sue.
I am not happy whenever Arsenal lose. But whenever we lose and you the Ozil fan-club start citing ozil as our saviour then Call bullcrap to it. You guys have this mythical Ozil that is so amazing while in 5 of the 6 seasons that he is has been here he has been average at best.
Again, you guys never address our objections but instead go for red herrings, deflecting and pivoting.
I will ask you once again, you the ozil fan club keep going on about this mythical creativity that ozil brings to the team. But when was the last time he got more than 9 assists in a season for the 5 or so seasons he has been here. With Prince Ozil as the poster child of our Arsenal of tye last 5 years we have finished 5th and 6th in the last 2 consecutive seasons. It seems his mythical creativity that averages about 8 assists a season is as relevant as my late great great grandma.
No time for any sentiment. Ozil has had more than 5 years at Arsenal to prove some of us his doubters wrong but he seems to have failed dramatically. The same criticism from his second season wheb he was in his mid 20’s at Arsenal are still the same today in his 30’s. What is a 30 year old ozil going to improve that he has been unable to improve in his prime (mid to late 20’s).
You guys remind me of a couple that has been trying for a second baby from when they were in their early 20’s but now thay they are in their late 60’s they still assure people that they can conceive.
That is how i look at it with Ozil. Couldn’t do much in his prime at Arsenal but now that he is coming to his end in his 30’s all of a sudden he is our saviour.
When it comes to Ozil you guys are not even looking at football, you just have this weird affiliation with him just as an individual. It’s bordering on cultish mentality.
Address my objection to Ozil creativity.
Well now I’ve heard it all now.. a cultish mentality??? A couple trying to conceive???? Omg where do you get all of this from??? We’re not even looking at football????
You know he reached 50 assists breaking Cantona’s record, he’s assisted the most games consecutively (7) just look him up on the PL stats (although I have to say they’re not as good as they were under Wenger, probably because he rarely plays these days) another good one to look up is Ozil v Eriksen. 1033 chances creates.. not too shabby for someone’s who’s crap hey?? Well I know who I’d rather have in the team… now if you’ll excuse me I have to get back to my Ozil cult
Hey Goonster,
nobody hates Emery… just read best comment on this topic coming from Phil:
“And let’s not forget that the player (Ozil) has longer on his contract than the manager does.”
“Goonster” you and “I got an idea” should really stay away from quoting and having an opinion about football.
Every expert out there from ex football greats to managers have said that Ozil is one of the best playmakers on the game.
Yet you and half a dozen other dimwits continue down the path of pretending to know better
YOU DO NOT !!! AND OBVIOUSLY NEITHER DOES EMERY
The point is he is the best player on the club, you can see from examples of managers/player
issues which another poster very well outlined, this fiasco does not work.
Best managers in the game today inspire their players instead of alienating them and the proof
obvious.
Who are the top 3 teams in the league? Look at their managers and their relationship with players. I rest my case.
This is the problem with you guys. I don’t care what everyone says. I have been watching football for decades before Ozil moved here, i think i have a solid idea of what to expect from any player. You guys can Talk the Big Ozil Talk while the rest of us will keep asking for The Big Ozil Walk. You can make claims and assertions about how amazing everyone that has the same opinion as you has to say about ozil. That will not change me until Ozil himself puts in acceptable consistent performances to change my mind. Not this “1 good game every 10 games” he is known for.
Again, your claims and assertions don’t do much for me because I have my own eyes and it’s not only me that has this opinion of Ozil. The majority of the outside objective factors support my opinion. Madrid got rid of him, not a single big club came in for him apart from our weak Arsenal and psg. He has been at Arsenal for more than 5 years and I am yet to see any big club putting in a fight to sign Ozil. Why is that? They will snap up most Arsenal stars but they all seem to pass Ozil on. Even Ramsey that you lot used to make fun of before this season, the guy has had rumours from Barcelona, Bayern, Juventus, City, Chelsea etc for years now. But with ozil there is nothing.
All the managers, players and pundits can say whatever they want about ozil but claims mean nothing. These so called managers sweet talk ozil but how come that not a single one of them ever puts that talk into tangible action by bidding for him? They have had enough opportunities to sign ozil but how come they pass him on? From the moment madrid got rid of him, to his best assist season (2015/16), to when he ran down his contract like Ramsey hoping these big managers that keep hyping him up woull take the chance and courage to sign him but they still pass him on. They all had another opportunity this January where again Arsenal were ready to move Ozil on but same story, the silence from them has been deafening. Even taking him on loan is not attractive to these so called big club managers that you say rate him as highly as you his fanbase.
It’s like saying “Oh my goodness, my daughter is so beautiful, everyone keeps assuring me about her beauty”. But then the same people keep passing on the numerous chances to go out on a date with her.
What does that tell you about what they say in words compared to what they do?
Or maybe it’s somewhere in the middle? No the best but not the worst.
This arsenal squad isn’t good enough,hardly any coach would do wonders with it.Lets start by protesting for signings,after then we can judge Unai.
We pay top money for our tickets to watch world class players and Ozil you like it or not is one of them,and his touch is second to none and everybody who understand football will tell you that Ozil is one of the best no 10 in the world
If you want to watch us playing is 7 defensive players in Huddersfield and Bate clear you haven’t got a clue about the beautiful game
He’s the first name i look for when the team news comes out & when I go to a match.. I want to see him play!
Yes I just love these defensive line ups that still end up conceding & losing! Just brilliant
Ozil situation is dire for arsenal.
Today his Instagram post suggests arsenal is home for him.
The question is though, with dick law, Wenger, gazidas and sven out, does he know who’s at home?
But as much as us fans are discussing the ozil matter, the players themselves much be. This is clearly afftecting our performances and the power of what the manager is trying to say.
If on the outside in the Wenger end people thought arsenal need tough love to sort them out, them maybe these new recruits like Raul and co want to give tough loving.
Is that what we need?
All these new faces are trying to shape a new arsenal. Ironic when our next season kits been leaked and it’s a kick back to our 88/89 kit.
I just want to see improvements and although torriera gendouzi holding Leno and our forwards have done 8 out of 10, we haven’t done enough.
Players and manager
Just read this DB quote posted by Mesut Ozil on Instagram following backing from the Arsenal fans:
WHEN YOU START SUPPORTING A FOOTBALL CLUB, YOU DON’T SUPPORT IT BECAUSE OF IT’S TROPHIES, OR A PLAYER, OR IT’S HISTORY, YOU SUPPORT IT BECAUSE YOU FIND YOURSELF SOMEWHERE THERE; FOUND A PLACE WHERE YOU BELONG.
That sounds to me like someone who, just like Dennis, loves where he is at this precise moment in his life.
He actually sounds more like a fan than some who claim to be on here.
Ozil placed this quote after being left out of the squad that travelled on Thursday night.
It gives one an insight in to a gentleman who, despite the appalling treatment by our club, has shown the courage and deceny to show his feelings for AFC.
No backbone? Lazy? Mentally fragile? Weak and dross?
Don’t make me laugh, some people just haven’t got a clue what makes a w/c footballer also a man to admire and respect.
Phil, hope your long journey home went o.k. This might at least give you something to smile about, I hope so anyway!!
My heart really breaks and is torn apart after reading the posts. I guess all the disagreements come from the fact that we are not playing how everyone thinks we should be playing. I am also the one who are frusrated with our poor display these days.
I think a good manager is supposed to bring out the best of what he has in his squad at the moment. As long as fans can see everyone on the pitch tries with 120% commitment, and can see some improvement in every game, we can feel good.
We all know Ozil is a fantastic player, but given the expectations we have had for him, he has not yet fully met them. His career at Arsenal cannot be regarded as a failure. I don’t want that. So, I do hope Emery can help Ozil find his top form again. I don’t think excluding him is the answer. We have two top strkers and why can’t they gel better together? In my humble opinion, he plays too deep to influence the game. I don’t know whether he tries to avoid physical contact or not, but he should play closer to strikers.
When I watched the games against Spurs and Leicester, I saw lots of improvement and thought we were back on the right track. But, now, we seem to fall apart again. Something needs to be done. I hope the people at the top share this urgency and give full support to the players, the staff and the fans.
We now have the most creatively redundant midfield in the Premier League. We are ****! Memories flood in of Cesc, Rosicky, Jack Wishire, Santi and (scapegoat) Mesut Ozil and even Aaron Ramsey. Dance, Art and Ability. Although Satan Kroenke is ultimately to blame, Emery himself is choosing teams that would struggle in the championship. Without creative flair we look like headless chickens. We need Ozil and Ramsey in the team. Xhaka, Mustafi, Iwobi, AMN and Kolasinac are just not good enough. They wouldn’t even get into Watfords side. Ozil is a scapegoat for the real culprit Greedy Satan Kroenke. Kroenke OUT!
Thanks guys but there is one thing your missing about ozil who doesn’t know him? There is politic here about ozil arsenal are not letting down ozil becoz of form but money I heard they showed him a door my question is who came in January try to buy him and who is going to come buy him in sommer with the player being benched? If you loans a player to onother club and he is not playing how the team feels remember nhabry to westbrom Wenger complained OK so how are they going to get rid of him when they know the player is happy with his weekly wages and we sit here instead of watching beautiful football we are besy talking about internal problems arsenal are very sick arsenal can’t buy proper players arsenal agoin to worse than three years ago couch and the board are all wrong
I think Özil deserves a last chance in order to prove Emery and his critics wrong. Lastly his job isn’t to track back but to create chances for the attackers. Emery has to accept that and give him the freedom he needs. I did like Suarez’s latest cameo though. If he keeps improving, we may not need Özil at all anymore, that’s maybe the reason why he was brought here at the first place.