Arsenal: None of this is Mesut Ozil’s fault, is it?

Arsenal fans are nipping at the heels of Mesut Ozil, keen now to see him driven out of town, but if you really get down to it, it isn’t his fault, is it?

I have been outspokenly for freezing Mesut Ozil out of Arsenal, and I’ll stay on that side of the argument for as long as it takes. He doesn’t belong at the club anymore, he isn’t part of the future, and the wages he is eating up could be used in so many more beneficial ways.

And it’s frustrating, seeing him on the bench, unused, as the club struggles to create any semblance of a chance against Manchester City, all the while wondering why he’s even here – why can’t he just not be here anymore and leave us move on?

But then again, it’s not really his fault, is it?

Think back to January. The club was really pushing to make something happen. He signed a new deal and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan came in and there was a lot of hope that this burst of proven talent could push the club up to the level it should have been at.

He finished that year with five goals and twelve assists in all competitions. The year before that was 12 goals and 12 assists and before that, obviously, his massive 19 assist season.

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No matter what they say (and I say), Ozil was producing for the club under Arsene Wenger. He was a player from Wenger’s own mind, and when he signed on, chances are he had no idea what the future of the club would look like, unless he has the power of foresight, which, I guess, some would argue he does.

But he signs this new mega deal, commits himself to the club, dedicates himself to it, and in comes Unai Emery with a complete regime change that would require Ozil to adjust or not not play.

Ozil is past 30, he’s done one thing incredibly well his entire life. You don’t just become someone else after that long.

So now he has this mega contract, but he isn’t playing, and he can’t be himself because the team isn’t the team he is used to having, and everyone suddenly wants him out of town – even more than they used to.

That’s tough. I know that pity doesn’t really amount to anything, and he’s a professional, and yada yada, but at the end of the day, it’s hard to fault Ozil for the stress he’s putting on the club, because this certainly isn’t the club he expected it to be last January.