Mesut Ozil has been told he does not have a future at Arsenal.
The Germany international has been an incredible servant to the club since 2014 but it now appears that he is on his way out of the club.
Ozil has not been included in the club’s Premier League squad, or the Europa League squad, and that means he can only play for the U23s until his contract expires at the end of the season.
It is a remarkable fall from grace for the player who once cost the Gunners over £42m, and means he is almost certain to be finding a new club either in January or next summer.
But he has found an ally in former Gunners centre-back Laurent Koscielny.
The defender joined the Gunners in 2010 from Lorient but left in 2019 to move to Bordeaux, calling time on a distinguished career in north London.
The pair have won three FA Cups together and Koscielny has come to the defence of his old pal.
Speaking to L’Equipe, as quoted by The Sun, he said: “As a man, he is a very good person, who got along with all his teammates.
“He gave a lot, helped sick children. He is a generous person, with whom I got along very well.
“As a player, he is, in my opinion, a phenomenon. He can find passes that no one sees, he’s a maestro. He can rock a game with incredible passes.
“We’re both part of the ‘Arsene Wenger Generation’. The coach loved him as a player.
“It was more complicated with Unai Emery and Mikel Arteta. Knowing him, he must always be professional in training, always on time.
“He is undoubtedly at the level demanded by the Premier League. There is probably a certain case with the club since last year. I hope both sides find a deal that works for everyone.
“He’s a competitor. I hope to see him back on the pitch soon, at Arsenal or somewhere else, because he is a real talent.”
GIVEMESPORT’S Harry Sherlock says…
Koscielny is right, here.
Ozil is a top, top talent and to see him sidelined leads to serious questions over the management of Mikel Arteta and the way he deals with his talent.
The 32-year-old has won the World Cup and plenty of club trophies too, scoring 44 goals and laying on 77 assists across his 254 appearances for the Emirates side.
He is also earning £350,000-per-week, meaning he is pocketing £1.4m a month to watch the Gunners play.
At the very core of this, that is an extravagant waste of money.
Arteta would have been better off implementing him into his squad just to make the outlay worthwhile.