Unai Emery has revealed what he thought of Mesut Ozil and why he did not play him.
After replacing Arsene Wenger, Emery led Arsenal to the Europa League final in his first season in charge, they also narrowly missed out on Champions League qualification.
His second season was expected to be better but thing began to unravel quickly and the results became bad.
Arsenal struggled to win games and one player who Unai Emery didn’t trust often enough was Mesut Ozil.
The German midfielder struggled in the few games that he played under Emery this season and the Spanish manager came under fire often for not starting Ozil.
Emery recently opened up on his complicated relationship with Ozil and revealed why he didn’t start the former Real Madrid man that often.
Emery told Marca per The Mirror: “He’s a very good player, that’s clear. But the physical demands in the Premier League are high.
“His performances are unpredictable. He’s a bit below the top players at the moment.
“Sometimes Arsenal play better with him but other times he doesn’t make such a difference.”
For balance, Mesut Ozil has previously had his say on what it was like for him under Emery and how things have changed under new manager Mikel Arteta.
“I had a hard time, especially with the previous coach Unai Emery, but now everything has changed, and I am very happy with everything,” Ozil said.
Quite damning comments from Emery, however, I will leave it up to others how they interpret what the Spaniard had to say and whether he is right in his assessment of the mercurial German playmaker.