Premier League finale: 3 days 23 hours 52 minutes
 

Premier League

Arsenal

Martin Keown: 'Mesut Ozil not fit to wear the Arsenal shirt'

Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil is accused of failing to play for the team by former Gunners defender Martin Keown following Thursday's exit from the Europa League.

Martin Keown has slammed Mesut Ozil for his display against Atletico Madrid and has accused the Arsenal midfielder of picking and choosing the games he plays.

Ozil, like many of his teammates at the Wanda Metropolitano, failed to find his rhythm as the Gunners slipped to a 1-0 loss on the night and 2-1 defeat on aggregate in the Europa League semi-final tie.

The Germany international has often come in for criticism from former Arsenal players for failing to take big games by the scruff of the neck, and Keown believes that the incoming new manager needs to get to the bottom of the problem as a priority.

"It's almost like his hands are in the air: 'Look, this group aren't as good as me'," he told BT Sport. "Somebody needed to grab him a long time ago, to give him a shake and say: 'We're trying to get you the ball to you. We are working for you, but you're not working for us.'

"I bet he doesn't play again this season. He'll have some emotional breakdown and he won't be able to play at the weekend. I don't know how many illnesses he's had this season - but the fella is not kidding me! That is not a proper performance. He is not giving everything and there's much more under the bonnet.

"Somebody else will find it. Whether the new manager coming will find it, I don't know. It's a big problem for the new manager because [Arsene] Wenger's invested an awful lot of money in this player — and I'm not seeing a performance to go with it.

"He wasn't fit to wear the shirt for me tonight and I've seen this a lot this season, and he needs to be dug out because we expect better from him. He's a World Cup winner. These are crocodile tears that I'm seeing from the player. He's not conning me!"

Ozil has a combined 17 goals and assists in 33 Premier League and Europa League outings this season.

Share this article now:
Read Next:
Wenger: 'Koscielny needs a miracle'
>

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!
Loading ...
Recommended Next on SM
Wenger: 'Koscielny needs a miracle'
Everton 'willing to match Wenger salary'
Mourinho 'asks Carrick for transfer advice'
Puel: "Wenger is a great loss for Arsenal"
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CManchester CityMan City363042102267694
2Manchester UnitedMan Utd36245767283977
3Liverpool372012580384272
4Tottenham HotspurSpurs36218768323671
5Chelsea36216961342769
6Arsenal361861272482460
7Burnley371412113537-254
8Everton371310144355-1249
9Leicester CityLeicester361111144954-544
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle36118173646-1041
11Crystal Palace371011164355-1241
12Bournemouth371011164360-1741
13Watford37118184463-1941
14Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton36913143347-1440
15West Ham UnitedWest Ham36911164567-2238
16Southampton37715153755-1836
17Huddersfield TownHuddersfield3699182756-2936
18Swansea CitySwansea3789202754-2733
RWest Bromwich AlbionWest Brom37613183154-2331
RStoke CityStoke37612193367-3430
Scroll for more - Tap for full version

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Select and display your favourite team's news and scores in this panel

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CManchester CityMan City363042102267694
2Manchester UnitedMan Utd36245767283977
3Liverpool372012580384272
4Tottenham HotspurSpurs36218768323671
5Chelsea36216961342769
6Arsenal361861272482460
7Burnley371412113537-254
8Everton371310144355-1249
9Leicester CityLeicester361111144954-544
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle36118173646-1041
11Crystal Palace371011164355-1241
12Bournemouth371011164360-1741
13Watford37118184463-1941
14Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton36913143347-1440
15West Ham UnitedWest Ham36911164567-2238
16Southampton37715153755-1836
17Huddersfield TownHuddersfield3699182756-2936
18Swansea CitySwansea3789202754-2733
RWest Bromwich AlbionWest Brom37613183154-2331
RStoke CityStoke37612193367-3430
Scroll for more - Tap for full version

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Select and display your favourite team's news and scores in this panel

Login, I already have my ad-free pass
Log in with Facebook to customise Sports Mole
Buy ad-free access (show me the options)
Buy monthly ad-free access for £1.20/month
Buy yearly ad-free access for £12 (2 months free)
Settings - Logout - Manage your account
Settings - Logout - Manage your account
This site uses cookies for Analytics. Click to accept and dismiss this message.