Arsenal and Germany playmaker Mesut Ozil could be putting clubs off with his £330,000-per-week wage demands, according to latest reports.
The 28-year-old is out of contract in the summer and is being linked with a number of clubs, but could find himself short of offers. According to The Sun, Ozil is demanding £330,000-per-week, a figure that nobody wants to pay.
They report that Ozil may have to reduce his demands to a mere £250,000-per-week instead, in what they describe as a “humiliating climbdown”. The Sun also report that only Besiktas are seriously interested in signing him.
That may not be strictly true, as Ozil has been linked with Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, and Fenerbahce in recent weeks. The latest trend in the discourse surrounding Ozil is the suggestion that even Arsene Wenger and Arsenal don’t want him anymore.
This has been based on Ozil’s recent absence from the side due to a knee injury. Arsenal’s reluctance to exacerbate the injury has been interpreted as them quietly phasing Ozil out of the starting eleven.
Pundits and journalists have also tried to make a link between Arsenal’s recent good form and Ozil’s injury. Ozil is expected to be fit in time for the trip to Watford on Saturday.