Arsenal just recorded their 4th loss of the Premier League season against West Ham United and some fans are left scratching their heads over the exclusion of Mesut Ozil from the squad lineup altogether.
19-year-old Declan Rice scored from inside the box to put the Hammers 1-0 up in the second half. A lacklustre performance from the Gunners made sure the match ended with that scoreline, letting Manchester United with the chance to climb their way closer to the 5th spot.
Unai Emery introduced a back three from the start with Matteo Guendouzi and Granit Xhaka given creative responsibilities from the midfield. However, very soon it became evident that Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were going to be ineffective for the entire match without supply from the back, in other words without the presence of an Ozil, Henrikh Mkhitaryan or Aaron Ramsey.
Emery was forced to bring on the Welshman in the second half and Ramsey did bring fresh energy into the attacking end but it was far too late.
Ozil did pick up an injury earlier in December but he was ruled fit for this fixture and even had trained with the entire squad this past week. When asked about the 30-year-old’s absence from the match lineup, Emery revealed it was because of ‘tactical reasons’.
With constant rumours of a fallout between the club number ten and the manager, the Arsenal faithful are growing frustrated with the entire ordeal. If the Gunners are to really sell him, they should exclude him altogether from all club matches and if not they should really play one of their assets whom they are £350,000-per-week, or at least keep him on the bench as an option.
After the match, Emery simply stated that he chose the players he thought best would be suited for the game. He also denied questions regarding the sale of any player, which is a red flag altogether since Ramsey’s departure from the Emirates is pretty much guaranteed at this point.
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