Ozil pledges future to Arteta
Mesut Ozil has pledged his future to Arsenal and believes it will be an “exciting” one under new boss Mikel Arteta.
Prior to the arrival of the Spaniard at the Emirates, Ozil had been linked with a move to Turkish club Fenerbahce after falling out of favour with Unai Emery. But Arteta, a former teammate of Ozil’s when they played for the Gunners under Arsene Wenger, has made it clear that he sees the German playmaker as fundamental to his plans.
That faith has been rewarded, for the time being, with eye-catching performances from Ozil and the 31-year-old told Bein Sports Turkey that he envisages staying at the Emirates until his contract expires at the end of next season. “I’m very pleased with my contract and I will continue here this season and next,” declared Ozil, reputed to be on £350,000-a-week. “I can’t tell you what the future will bring, I’m excited about the future, but I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
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Back to basics
Asked what Arteta had brought to the club since his appointment as manager last month, Ozil said: “It is basically getting us back to the old Arsenal virtues. Fighting and having possession, being in control of the game, having the ball all the time. These are the things that he is working on with us and you can see it - everyone is smiling, laughing, enjoying their time. It has made us successful.”
Dakonam in, Mustafi out?
Despite the clear signs of improvement in Arsenal in the short time Arteta has been in charge, glaring weaknesses remain, none more so than in defence. So it’s no surprise to learn in the Daily Mirror that Arteta “heads the chase” for Getafe defender Djene Dakonam and he is quietly confident he will lure the Togolese defender to the Emirates.
The 28-year-old, who comes with a a £22m price tag, is attracting interest from Monaco, Tottenham and Everton but apparently he is sweet on Arsenal, and the Mirror says Arteta will offload Shkodran Mustafi to Galatasaray in order to free up space in the dressing room for Dakonam.
Nketiah to stay
Such is the positive mood at the Emirates that no-one wants to leave it seems, and 20-year-old striker Eddie Nketiah is no exception. He was expected to head out on loan for the second half of the season after spending the opening months of the campaign with Leeds.
But Sky Sports says he has decided to stick around and fight for an opportunity in the first team, with Pierre-Emerick Augbameyang set to miss three games after his red card against Crystal Palace.
“Nottingham Forest, Sheffield Wednesday and Bristol City were all interested in taking him on loan for the second half of the season,” reports Sky Sports. “However, after talks with head coach Mikel Arteta, Nketiah will remain at the Emirates.”
