Mesut Ozil Set to Stay at Arsenal as Gunners Struggle to Move on £350k-a-Week Star
Mesut Özil is set to remain at Arsenal for next season, after the club struggled to find buyers for the 30-year-old due to his high wages.
Özil endured a difficult campaign last season and the club were reportedly ready to move him on this summer.
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According to The Daily Mail, Özil's £350,000 per-week wages have been an immense financial burden for Arsenal and that they would be open to offers for him in order to generate funds which could be used by manager Unai Emery in the transfer market.
However, the report adds that the club are yet to receive any approaches for the World Cup winner, with his wages appearing to deter sides from trying to sign him.
This last campaign was statistically the worst of Özil's Arsenal career, as he started just 20 league games and had a meagre return of just three assists in all competitions.
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He never seemed to be fully trusted by Unai Emery in the way he had done by previous manager Arsène Wenger as he was repeatedly left out of the starting lineup and at times even the entire match-day squad.
His perceived lack of work-rate appeared to count against him particularly in away games, where Emery seemed to prefer the energy of the likes of Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Alex Iwobi.
The north London side's campaign ended with a heavy 4-1 defeat in the Europa League final to London rivals Chelsea, meaning that the Gunners will miss out on Champions League football for the third consecutive season.
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Özil joined Arsenal from La Liga giants Real Madrid in 2013 for a then club-record fee of £42.5m. He would be an integral player for Arsène Wenger as the German would be vital to the north London side winning the FA Cup three times in four seasons.
He was in inspired form in the 2015-16 season, providing a staggering 19 assists as Arsenal finished second in the Premier League, their highest finish in the league since the 04-05 campaign.
However he has not been able to find similar levels of consistency in following years and now finds himself at a crossroads in his Arsenal career.
