Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr made a £5m offer to sign Arsenal midfielder Mesut Özil, but the German was not interested in the move.
Özil, who was left out of the Gunners’ Europa League squad, has repeatedly insisted he wants to stay at the Emirates Stadium and fight for his place in the team, despite Arsenal’s willingness to consider terminating his contract.
Despite his chances of playing looking incredibly slim, Özil is seemingly determined to stay. TyC Sports’ César Luis Merlo claims he had the chance to sign a lucrative two-year contract with Al-Nassr, who had a £5m bid for the midfielder accepted, but his refusal to leave saw the move break down.
Arsenal are running out of time to find a potential buyer for Özil. They spent a large part of the summer looking for options, with teams in Turkey and even Major League Soccer considered as potential buyers.
![[FILE] Liverpool’s Egyptian midfielder Mohamed Salah (L) runs with the ball as Arsenal’s Brazilian defender Gabriel closes in during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium in London. (Photo by Catherine Ivill / POOL / AFP)](https://www.afriupdate.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/000_97B779-scaled-e1703231851386-120x86.jpg "Liverpool host Arsenal in battle for Premier League Christmas No. 1 1")
As noted by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Arsenal’s determination to sell early in the window may have stemmed from the fact that Özil was due an £8m loyalty bonus at the end of September as a reward for staying at the club, and cash-strapped Arsenal would have liked to have avoided paying that.
No buyer came forward and Arsenal were forced to shell out that £8m, and that unwanted blow to their finances could well explain why the Gunners’ pursuit of midfielder Thomas Partey on deadline day seemed so frantic and sudden.
However, Arsenal are said to be saving ‘significant’ sums of money by keeping Özil on the sidelines. As part of the German’s £350,000-a-week contract, he is due hefty bonuses for appearances, but he’s obviously not getting any of them at this moment in time.
The next step in this whole saga will be to see whether Mikel Arteta opts to include Özil in his 25-man Premier League squad, which must be confirmed on October 20.
Failure to make that squad would mean Özil’s only chances of senior football would come in cup competitions, and that realisation may well force him to reconsider his stance.
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