Arsenal want to sell Mesut Ozil – but may be forced to let him leave on loan in January
Gunners desperate to offload £350,000-a-week midfielder after Unai Emery decided he wasn't up to his way of playing - but fear no-one can afford to take him off their hands
ARSENAL want to sell Mesut Ozil next month - but may be resigned to punting him around on loan in a desperate bid to offload him.
Ozil has found himself out in the cold after Gunners boss Unai Emery lost faith in his ability to play to his system.
The World Cup winner has become a peripheral figure at the Emirates over the past six weeks and has not started a Premier League match since November 11.
In that time the 30-year-old has struggled with a back issue, but Emery has twice axed him for tactical reasons - first for the trip to Bournemouth and then the North London Carabao Cup derby against Tottenham.
It is clear the Arsenal boss does not trust Ozil to perform in his high intensity and high work-rate style of play.
There have been suggestions the pair have clashed in team meetings when the manager has openly questioned his work ethic.
And now it has reached the stage where Arsenal have decided they are open to offers when the transfer window opens next month.
Ozil's track record means there are clubs across Europe who would be interested in snapping him up - but there would be a major barrier when it comes to finances.
For the Gunners would be looking for at least £30million before the agreed to sell, and the buying club would then have to come up with a package which would be good enough for the player to accept.
And given Ozil only signed a new £350,000-a-week contract at the Emirates this year, that kind of deal will be out of reach for the majority of sides in world football.
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As it stands, the ex-Germany international is due to receive £45m over the remainder of his existing deal which runs until the summer of 2021, so he is in no rush to quit.
Ozil has already rejected the suggestion of a move to Inter Milan and will not be forced out anywhere just to keep the Gunners happy.
That leaves Arsenal in a position where they could be stuck with a financial liability for a player the manager clearly has no time for.
So the London club are now having to punt him around the loan market in the hope they can find someone ready to take him - and even then they could well find themselves having to pay half his massive wages.