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‘Say you’re sorry’: Paul Merson thinks Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta owes one man an apology
Arsenal legend Paul Merson believes Gunners boss Mikel Arteta needs to apologise to Mesut Ozil and reinstate him to the team next month.
The 31-year-old only featured sporadically under Arteta and has not played a single minute of competitive football after English football resumed in June.
Ozil was even left out of Arsenal’s Premier League and Europa League squad lists, but clubs have a chance to update those in January.
While some pundits and fans initially understood Arteta’s decision to omit Ozil, Arsenal are currently in woeful form in the league and are struggling in front of goal.
And Merson believes that the 2014 World Cup winner would improve the team from their “atrocious” showing against Tottenham last week.
“Arsenal could still be playing Tottenham now and they wouldn’t have scored a goal,” he wrote in the .
“What can they do in January to fix it? Go and knock on Mesut Ozil’s door, say you’re sorry and you need him to play!
“Arsenal were atrocious against Spurs. They never looked like scoring. Ozil’s getting £350,000-a-week and sitting at home while his team can’t score.
“I’m not saying play him against Manchester City or Liverpool, when you’re not going to see much of the ball.
“But against teams like Spurs or Burnley, he can get on the ball and dictate things and make a few decent chances.
“They could re-register him in January. They’re missing a trick if they don’t.”
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It’s a sorry situation at Arsenal now, a £350,000-a-week playmaker unable to play while the team simply can’t fashion chances, never mind goals.
At the start of the season, it really looked as though the Gunners could challenge for a top-four place, but as things stand they’re closer to relegation than the Champions League spots.
Merson is right – Ozil needs to be brought back into the fold as soon as it’s possible to do so, as his qualities are very much needed between now and the end of the season.