I’m now firmly in the DHD camp as well. You’re right Top Gun, Özil produces so little, which has been the case for a long time now, that I can’t see the sense of any suggestion that it’s ridiculous Emery doesn’t use him more. It’s basically playing with ten men when he’s in the team.

Having said that, I can understand why Özil got the contract he has. Arsenal had just lost Sanchez and as both their contracts were expiring at the same time the club’s hierarchy probably didn’t feel it could afford to lose Özil as well with regards to their own credibility with the fan base. So he got an almighty pay rise to get him to sign a new contract.

Sadly, it’s proved to be an utter waste of money as Özil is simply going through the motions. He plays when selected, so on the face of it is behaving professionally. But he doesn’t seem bothered when he isn’t picked. Gives me the impression he’s semi-retired.

I agree about Özil effectively being semi retired. What a waste of talent. I’m surprised he doesn’t get asked more frequently why he seems content letting his career just fade away. He’s getting paid handsomely anyway so why not make the effort? Does he not care about his legacy or standing in the game?

There was nothing wrong with Campbell’s attitude. I consider it shameful the way you try to undermine the reputation of an Arsenal legend by implying he “pulled a ‘Sol’ on us”. Disgraceful behaviour by you. Campbell deserves the respect of Arsenal fans.

More to the point is the fact that Cazorla's return to football (which really is very old news now) is something to be celebrated. The man had an absolutely horrific injury. Wenger described it as the worst he had come across in his entire time involved in football. There was a genuine fear that he would never walk properly again, even talk of amputation. It's simply tremendous that he is playing again.

Couldn’t agree more about Cazorla’s return to fitness. But I thought it was disgraceful to unfairly disrespect Sol to discuss it.

Right on cue

Turkish newspaper Takvim claims Fenerbahce director of football Damien Comolli has opened talks with Arsenal over signing Mesut Özil on loan in January

We will be paying some of his wages apparently

Özil to the Toon? Would he go? Could they pay him?

https://tbrfootball.com/should-newcastl ... esut-ozil/

I wonder if we are still interested in him.

https://tbrfootball.com/summer-arsenal- ... o-2019-20/
Summer Arsenal target Daniele Rugani has had miserable start to 2019/20

No chance

Even if arsenal paid 120k a week of his salary it means mike Ashley agreeing to pay 200k a week for Özil which won’t happen then it would require Özil living in Newcastle when he doesn’t even bother playing away games in the north east for us so there’s precisely *%^@ all chance of the little Herbert agreeing to go there

Well there’s a surprise. I never saw that coming

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/ ... ockey-team

Didn't know they played ice hockey in the UK enough to even have a league. That said, its a smart move on the club to bring attention to them and the sport.

Jumping on the Özil discussion, I believe he is no longer interested to turn it on for Arsenal. IMO, his relationship with Emery has reached a point of no return. Put him on, and we are a 10 man team. He is not going to go all out, to find a way to send balls through for goal scoring chances. Well, if I was earning tons and yet have a manager who does not believe in me, I would do the same. That would be my only way to say to my manager "up yours!", and yet stay professionally correct. Emery mismanaged him.

What about the Europa league final then when Özil stunk the place out for 77 minutes then got subbed for Willock who showed more in those 13 minutes than our most expensive earner.

The only way we get rid of Özil is to drop him completely surely people can see that. It’s not being mismanaged. If we keep playing him the lacklustre performances continue as he will want to keep raking in a ridiculous salary he won’t get elsewhere. I seriously doubt he will get a 200k a week wage offer let alone 350 so he’s going to have to be paid off.

When I think Özil my thoughts automatically divert to Fabregas ...

20-year-old Cesc Fàbregas for Arsenal during 2007/2008 season:

47 games
15 goals
22 assists


Compare that level of contribution to Mesut

Özil just never really did it for us at all. Decent couple of seasons and a very intelligent player at that point but his attitude stinks to high heaven.

Forget about bloody Brexit, this Wagatha Christie story is proper news. Comedy gold.

Fiendish criminal mastermind Rebekah Moriarty Vardy's dastardly plot to take over the world was thwarted by the sheer genius of newly appointed head of MI5 Colleen Sherlock Rooney.

OMG.

Well, I was not defending Özil. He is clearly disinterested to bust a gut for the team, and much less so for Emery. I do not wish to see him in an Arsenal shirt anymore. Okay, maybe Emery did not mismanage him, I don't know. But, I would do the same as Özil. Carry on earning the fat wages and doing little, or nothing at all.
Emery allows it, so why not?

What can Emery do to stop it? The managerial decision-making structure is no longer what it was in the Wenger years. I doubt paying off Özil’s contract is his final decision. All Emery can do is attempt to persuade the hierarchy above him, presumably Raul Sanllehi in the main, to either pay off his contract or meet much of Özil’s salary if he agrees to join another club on loan. The obvious strategy for Emery to do that is not pick him, and he’s basically doing that apart from giving Özil the occasional chance of proving he wants to play, which Özil is clearly not doing.

I don’t see how it’s fair to blame Emery for the situation with Özil, including any claim that Emery has mismanaged him.

Remember Trevor Hockey?

It’s brilliant

Vardy is a shameless self publicist

Basically there’s only one way to sort this out and it’s a paddling pool filled with jelly and the 2 of them wrestling till it meets a conclusion

Loved the beard. If your team looked like it could be in relegation trouble the manager would go out and sign Trevor. Not the most skilful, indeed often simply brutal but if you needed to pick a player to fight for your life you would pencil in his name.

Also why should the club have to pay off his contract because Özil is playing beneath himself.

Contrast how Ramsey was playing out of self respect after he agreed to his Juve move to how Özil is playing now going through the motions. Shows something about his character

I thought he would have been a better bet than Luiz. Gone off the boil a bit but on form a better defender than Luiz.

He would have cost 36 million and there were massive doubts about him last season.

I think the club were worried about another Mustafi signing and opted for LUiz as a stop gap

Ho ho ho.

I thought the figure was less around 24 million. And Luiz has not thus far been much of an addition.

Oh it's a mud singer alright...

People don't rate Özil, everyone entitled to a view, but how can he be considered to be going through the motions when he isn't even playing? Two 70 minute appearances in 11 first team games - he has hardly had a chance to play beneath himself this season. Bottom line is that the manager doesn't fancy him. That Özil hasn't been all over the media complaing about it shouldn't be used against him as not giving a monkeys.

Emery dropped Özil last season when half the team was performing poorly. As we continued to struggle, he persisted with an out of form Iwobi ahead of Özil. Didn't he even suggest at one stage that Özil would be better off somewhere else?

He wasn't playing Ramsey either until injuries forced him to and Ramsey was MOTM game after game.

Now it's perfectly legitimate to question why Özil didn't react like Ramsey. I think it's very obvious that Ramsey loves the club. He became a proper footballer at Arsenal. Özil clearly has no such emotional connection and is a different type of character altogether.

Özil was very good in his first two seasons with us. He was the leading creator of chances in the league by a mile.

I think Emery has managed him very badly. Özil deserves plenty of criticism but Emery certainly doesn't help.

Appoint him as one of your 5 captains (such an absurdity) and then drop him from the squad.

Because when he has played over the last 2 years his displays have been lethargic and disappointing.

Like I said Europa league final .... did less than Willock did And he was only on the pitch 13 minutes.

There was once a decent player in there who did it in spurts and could find passes few could but now there’s nothing.

He just wants us to pay up his contract early in full so he can go back to turkey. It’s obvious and we are right to dig our heels in.

That doesn't answer the point about him supposedly going through the motions when he isn't even playing. That is some trick! You state as an obvious fact that he wants to have his contract paid up in full in order to go to Turkey. How do you know that?

Presumably he's not putting it in on the training field either Hoy, and his displays have been ordinary at best for as long as I can remember when he has played. I think it was Bernard (apologies if I'm wrong there) who said something to the effect that playing Özil was pretty much playing with 10 men. In my opinion he's done nothing to deserve a place in the side. Having a massive wage is not enough to justify playing a passenger. I've long since had enough of him and the sooner he's out of the club the better.

Because it’s just bloody obvious since he became Erdogans mate

He’s still getting minor game time and when he does he doesn’t impress let’s face it.

And this from Bayern president, Hoeness on Özil fom July 2018. This was said after Özil stepped away from the DFB and his photo with Erdogan and Özil's speech, wherein he stated he felt unwanted, among other things.

Uli Hoeness, who told SportBild “Özil has been playing *%^@ for years. He won his last tackle before the 2014 World Cup. All he is doing on the field is playing cross passes. Now he hides himself and his crap performance behind this photo.

“Whenever we played against Arsenal, we played over him, because we knew he was the weak point.”

No telling what's really going on at Arsenal as Özil possibly is feeling unwanted again.

Özil is a fantastic player. I think he got better with us. He did the things he was known to be good for and added toughness and a few goals. People were asking of him to be something he is not: a leader. He was never a leader in the traditional sense. I also think neither Wenger or Emery could pigeon hole him into a XI that works. Not Özil's fault. He is what he is. At his best, he was very good.

The time has come for him to go. I'm not blaming him. I'm not blaming the manager either. It's like I told an ex "It's not you. It's not me either. It's nobody's fault. Bad timing."

[..and we were better off bringing Fabregas back..haha..I've beaten that horse beyond recognition ]

You certainly have. Miles beyond recognition. One of your obsessions, maybe? Wenger presumably didn’t want him back and wouldn’t take him back, perhaps because of his actions in getting the club to sell him to Barcelona?

So, Özil doesn't work hard enough in training.
https://metro.co.uk/2019/10/10/raul-san ... wsnow-feed

I'm sure most of you have seen the Wright - Bergkamp interview. You can see the genuine love between the two. it's always great seeing the old boys get together and reminisce.

I’m not sure this is news

Didn’t Aaron Ramsey say in an interview that Özil was the worst trainer he’d seen in his time at the club.

Apparently to bring safe standing to Arsenal stadium would actually result in a reduction of capacity.

I am starting to have concerns that natural selection is no longer working.