Arsenal: Off the pitch, Mesut Ozil stand admirable

Arsenal distanced themselves from Mesut Ozil’s criticism of the Chinese government regarding their detaining a million people from the Muslim Uighur community. For all of his problems on the pitch, off it, Ozil’s stand is admirable. The same cannot be said for the club.

Mesut Ozil put in one of his most lacking displays in Arsenal’s 3-0 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday afternoon. It was a pitiful effort that was rightly met by a chorus of boos as he trudged off the pitch just before the hour-mark, Freddie Ljungberg rightly making a statement of his disgust at his star player’s effort levels.

Find the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal Podcast here — A Christmas Miracle

There is no defending his showing at the weekend, and I have heavily criticised him already. However, it is important that we make a distinction between what happens on the pitch and what happens off it. And there might not be a player for that distinction is more important than Ozil.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

This week, the German thrust his head above the parapet and into hot water. On his social media channels, he criticised the Chinese government for detaining what human rights charities estimate is between one and two million Uighur Muslims against their will in Xinjiang, a region in western China. Translated from his Instagram post, Ozil said:

"“(In China) Qurans are burned, mosques were closed down, Islamic theological schools, madrasas were banned, religious scholars were killed one by one. Despite all this, Muslims stay quiet.”"

Immediately, Arsenal distanced themselves from their midfielder’s stance, stating that they are an ‘apolitical’ organisation. But when Hector Bellerin published a tweet earlier in the week asking British people to vote in the general election with the price tag ‘F*ckBoris’, no statement came from club. One rule for Ozil, another for Bellerin.

But what is the difference between these two instances? Well, quite frankly, it is very obvious: money. The Premier League’s deal with CCTV, which is China’s state TV which shows Premier League games throughout the country, is worth more than $700 million. It is their most lucrative with any TV company.

More importantly, China is a terrific market of tremendous growth. Football is exploding in the country, the state is piling investment in their domestic league and national team, and clubs are beginning to recognise the commercial potential of exploiting the Chinese market. There is a reason Arsenal conducted their preseason tour in 2017. And after Ozil’s comments criticising the Chinese state, CCTV pulled the broadcast of the Arsenal-City match on Sunday. You could not watch it in China.

So, if you ask why the club quickly dispelled Ozil’s comments and said nothing regarding Bellerin’s, the answer is not very difficult to decipher whatsoever. This, then, is a sad time for modern football, where clubs are more bothered about lining their pockets than they are for standing up for human values and holding a moral compass. You cannot help but think Arsene Wenger would side with Ozil.

Give credit to Ozil. He may toil on the pitch, but off it, he is a humanitarian saviour to many the world over, especially those in the Muslim community. He took a stand against injustice. It is just a shame that his club did not do the same.