Premier League 2019-20: Three reasons why Mesut Ozil should be starting for Arsenal

#2 Too much of a distraction

The battle between Ozil and Emery is overshadowing anything positive at the club.

Every single time an Arsenal line-up is announced on social media, thousands of fans instantly ask, ‘where’s Ozil?’. This narrative power struggle between player and manager has begun to overshadow other positive things happening at the club.

Fans could be appreciating the emergence of academy graduates Bukayo Saka and Joe Willock in the first team set up or Matteo Guendouzi's performances in the season. They could even take stock of Gabriel Martinelli's good run of form in the UEFA Europa League. Instead, a lot of the attention is diverted to the chatter about the omission of Ozil from the squad.

In all honesty, when the club’s highest earner doesn’t make matchday squads on a regular eyebrows are bound to be raised. Arsenal is basically paying Mesut Ozil over £1million a month to stay at home and play Fortnite.

Of course, money doesn't guarantee a spot in the squad but with a team is deprived of creative quality the way Arsenal are, they can’t afford not to play Mesut Ozil. Through absence, Ozil's stock has begun to rise while the #EmeryOut trend continues to gather pace.