Mesut Ozil Reportedly Rejected €25m-a-Year Offer From Chinese Side to Remain With Arsenal
German outlet Sport Bild are reporting that Mesut Ozil turned down a mega-contract from Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande to remain in London.
The player agreed a new three-and-a-half-year deal with the Gunners on Wednesday, and by virtue of that became the highest-paid player in the club's history. He will now be earning a whopping £350,000-a-week before tax.
The German playmaker stalled on signing a new deal for several months, and it was believed that he would follow Alexis Sanchez out the door, with the Chilean joining Manchester United earlier this month. If the report is to be believed, though, he has turned down an offer of €25m-a-year to re-sign with Arsenal, leaving them with quite the impressive attack.
"At Guangzhou Evergrande, Özil would have even earned around 25m euros per year," Sport Bild claim. "However, China was not a serious option for Özil. The international player decided against the other offers because he felt comfortable in London and had his own house built recently."
The Gunners only just lost 3-1 to relegation candidates Swansea City, but should be feeling like their fortunes could be on the mend, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang having come in from Borussia Dortmund, Henrikh Mkhitaryan joining in a swap deal for Sanchez and Ozil finally putting pen to paper on a new deal.
