Mesut Ozil finally ended the speculation surrounding his future this week by penning a new three-year deal at Arsenal.

The German had been linked with a move to both Barcelona and Real Madrid before deciding to stay at the Emirates, and the Gunners have rewarded him with an almighty pay rise to the tune of £350k-a-week.

That makes him the second highest-paid player in the Premier League, behind former team-mate Alexis Sanchez, who is reportedly on nearly double Ozil's wage at around £600k-a-week at Manchester United.

Ozil was convinced to stay by the club's show of ambition in the transfer market, signing Henrikh Mkhitaryan as part of the Sanchez deal, while they also added Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund for around £60m.

They now have some serious firepower in attack, with those three joined by Alexandre Lacazette, who has yet to really hit his stride for the Gunners.

But Arsenal still have plenty of concerns defensively, and some critics have said they should have prioritised that area for reinforcements, rather than their attack.

Petr Cech made a fatal error in their 3-1 loss at Swansea during the week, while Nacho Monreal didn't particularly cover himself in glory with that goal.

Granit Xhaka also came in for a lot of criticism from the Arsenal fans for his dismal performance in south Wales, and they are counting their lucky stars that Ozil decided to stay.

Obviously the pay rise helped sweeten the deal for the former Real Madrid man, but Arsene Wenger believes it was good business, as it was the cheapest option for the club.

That may sound ridiculous having shelled out that much money per week, as well as his signing on fee, but Wenger does actually have a good point.

The Frenchman says that it would have cost an awful lot more to sign a replacement for the 29-year-old, particularly with it being the January transfer window.

"When you let a player go you have to buy somebody of the same calibre and if you add the wages needed it will be similar," he pointed out.

"On top of that we have to pay a transfer. So overall I think Mesut for us was the cheapest option.

"On the other side all of our players are well paid. Very well paid. To feel sorry for them – I’m not sure that it’s the most objective assessment."

It certainly does make sense when you look at it from that angle, and with the form Ozil's been in they really couldn't afford to lose him.

He has four goals and seven assists in his last 14 Premier League outings, and with Aubameyang another target for him you can only envisage those stats improving further.

If Ozil can somehow help fire Arsenal back to the Champions League, it will be money seriously well spent.