Arsenal and Mesut Ozil: The disconnect of eras

Unai Emery stated in no uncertain terms that Mesut Ozil was not in the matchday squad for Arsenal’s 2-0 loss to Spurs because of tactical reasons. The growing chasm between player and manager is the perfect illustration of the disconnect of eras.

As soon as it was apparent that Alexis Sanchez would be leaving, Arsenal had no choice but to move heaven and earth to keep Mesut Ozil at the club. It was seen by executives as an impossibility to allow both to leave, especially for reduced prices. And so, somewhat reluctantly, the Gunners bowed to Ozil’s demands. A new, £350,000-a-week contract was agreed to.

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Arsene Wenger, the manager at the time, was happy with the deal. Ozil is a rare player, in his eyes, and is worth ponying up the cash for. And for Wenger, had he remained at the club, Ozil would still be a key component of his team.

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But Wenger didn’t remain. Arsenal, rightly, wanted to go in a new direction. The stagnation of the recent years motivated them to evolve, catch up with the modern game, and re-structure the whole management of the club. And the man they turned to does not share the same reverence and favour for Ozil. Unai Emery, unquestionably, does not see the value that Wenger saw in the German creator.

The recent disputes came to a head on Wednesday night. In a quarter-final of a Carabao Cup against Arsenal’s fiercest rivals, Emery chose to not include Ozil in the matchday squad. And when asked about the decision, the Spaniard was quite clear in his reasons for the decisions. He did not hesitate and very purposefully stated:

"“It’s a tactical decision because I thought that the players that were with us today were the best choices for this match.”"

Emery left no doubt. This was no curious back spasm. There was no late injury in training. It wasn’t a bust-up in training. This was purely a ‘tactical decision’. And what is most significant is that Wenger would never have made such a tactical choice. As long as Ozil was available for selection, Wenger would select him.

This is the perfect illustration of the disconnect between eras. Were Arsenal wrong to give Ozil £350,000-a-week in January? It is easy to say that they were in hindsight, but had Wenger stayed beyond the summer, then we could be sat in the same position stating what a brilliant move it was to keep one of the most talented and creative players in the world at the club when he had only six months to run on his contract.

Unfortunately, this is a natural consequence of making decisions based off one era’s thinking and then changing the era. Emery has different plans and ideas to Wenger. These fractious developments were always going to be present. It is just that this is a rather costly one. Since September, Ozil, the highest paid player at the club by some distance, has started just once in an away game and has made only 11 starts in 26 games in all competitions all season.

What will happen with Ozil remains to be seen. But Emery will not play soft. He has made that much quite clear.