The awkward situation between Arsenal and Mesut Özil came back into the spotlight last week when the German playmaker was
left out of their squad for the Europa League group stages.
Following Mikel Arteta’s appointment as head coach, Özil started all 10 of the club’s Premier League games before football was suspended in March because of the COVID-19 outbreak. But from the restart in July until the end of the 2019-20 campaign, the 31-year-old did not play a single minute of competitive football and this season he has not featured in a match-day squad.
In an interview with The Athletic in August, Özil suggested that his decision to reject a 12.5 per cent pay cut during the shutdown might have been a factor contributing towards the lack of game time he has been afforded, although Arteta has always insisted team selection is based purely on merit.
With Özil seemingly surplus to requirements despite being the team’s highest-earning player, Arsenal have been keen to move him on. But the 2014 World Cup winner has repeatedly stated that he is available for action and will be staying until the end of his contract in June 2021.
Another element that may have influenced Arsenal’s desire to shift Özil in the summer transfer window is a loyalty bonus amounting to around £8 million that was paid to him at the end of September.
This stems from an arrangement negotiated with the former Real Madrid attacker when he ended speculation about his future by signing a new three-and-a-half-year deal in January 2018. At that point, Arsenal would likely have wanted Özil to stay until at least the end of his agreement and such a mechanism — which many players benefit from — would have rewarded his service.
The reality has worked out very differently and at great expense to Arsenal, although they are saving significant sums of money in appearance-related bonuses while Özil is not involved.
Many eyes will now focus on whether Özil will feature in Arteta’s Premier League squad, with lists scheduled to be announced on October 20 after the closure of the domestic transfer window.
Arsenal's Mesut Ozil has received an £8m loyalty bonus despite failing to appear in a match-day squad this season
theathletic.co.uk
