Arsenal: Mesut Ozil wanting to stay is 'strange' says Laurens
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has downplayed his decision to leave Mesut Ozil out of his side for the 17th straight game, insisting it’s simply a matter of squad rotation. Arsenal beat Leicester City 2-0 in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night, but Ozil was nowhere to be seen again.
Arsenal news: Mikel Arteta remains coy over Mesut Ozil's future and offers hint (Image: GETTY)
Ozil himself appears to have indicated on multiple occasions that he is ready to return to the pitch, but he doesn’t seem to fit into Arteta’s plans.
He had been tipped to feature against Leicester, but Arteta opted against including him.
And after the game, the Gunners manager didn’t offer him much in the way of hope that he’ll be given any significant game time going forward.
“You can see that the players we are changing, we are using, it’s very difficult every week not for Mesut but for some other players as well to make the squad,” he said.
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“Of course I understand and I respect your questions but I have to try to do my job as fair as possible.
“I try to select the players that are, in my opinion, in better condition.
“The team is evolving, you can see the level they are achieving.
“This is where we are at the moment. We want to evolve more and play better and compete better. We need to keep maintaining that.”
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