OZIL’S REFUSAL WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN
When the history of english football’s coronavirus crash and the freespending era that preceded it is written, some numbers will stand out.
Mino Raiola’s £41million — his cut of Paul Pogba’s transfer to Manchester United; the 30 per cent deferral that Premier League clubs could not agree with their squads; the £752m it was feared was owed to the broadcasters if the season could not be completed; and £350,000.
Mesut Ozil’s weekly wage at Arsenal — the one he refused to reduce despite weeks of negotiation. he was not alone, of course.
There are others at Arsenal who have turned their backs on a deal, — one of the players is believed to be on loan. Yet the worst that can be said of Arsenal’s actions towards Ozil is that they’ve been highly generous. A player the club is looking to dump — well, he’s not going to be rushing to do them a favour. But Ozil? Arsenal made him the most expensive German footballer of all time in 2013. They paid £37.4m with a further £ 5.1m, depending on Champions League qualification.
They made him one of the Premier League’s highest-paid players and then, after some rather inconsistent campaigns, culminating in the end of the Arsene Wenger years, they broke the bank to award him a new, scarcely-deserved contract.
his new deal, measured in millions every month, is the subject of this latest dispute. Is Ozil worth it? no. he’s a very good player, when he can be troubled, but he isn’t delivering bang for buck at that level.
One of the reasons the crisis has hit Arsenal hardest is because they have, as Josh Kroenke defined it, a Champions League wage bill on a europa League budget. And not even the europa League right now — Arsenal were the only Premier League club to have been knocked out of it before Covid-19 closed football.
And while not all of Arsenal’s ills can be put down to individual players, the return on Ozil is symptomatic of a wider problem: that of marquee players with inflated reputations and salaries failing to deliver. Ozil played the full two hours, including extra time, in the second leg against Olympiacos. Teams with players on £350,000 should not lose at home to Olympiacos.
That level of reward is considered insurance. World-class players, earning world-class salaries, guaranteeing a certain level of progress. The failure to deliver is why Arsenal are so worried about their financial future. And why they hoped Ozil could get by on a mere £306,250 per week.
Splitting from his team-mates, who have taken a cut, could be another step on the road to a permanent separation.
Whatever attempt at public unity has been made, there will be resentment behind the scenes — and the leak of Ozil’s dispute with the club suggests as much.
Players are a team, and should act like a team on and off the pitch. When the players made the collective decision to take salary adjustments, they should have carried the group with them.
There is plainly ill- feeling. names of the other refuseniks have been circulating, but only Ozil’s has been served up publicly, suggesting an added level of frustration at his behaviour.
The actions of his agent erkut Sogut — he likes to be called doctor, which is funny because not many actual doctors like to be called agent — has also been unhelpful, flagging this impasse with an overweening sense of entitlement two weeks ago.
There is talk Ozil might relent, but the damage seems done. Ozil and his agent are deluded on two fronts. he isn’t worth that and cannot expect it to be forgotten easily, if at all.
He is very good but isn’t delivering bang for Arsenal’s buck