Despite being overlooked by head coach Unai Emery, Arsenal playmaker Mesut Ozil has made it clear that he will not be leaving the Gunners and will be staying at the club until the conclusion of his contract in 2021.
It is to note that Ozil has featured in only two of Arsenal’s 11 games this season under Emery. This gave wings to the rumours of the 31-year-old leaving the club before his tenure, but Ozil himself insisted that he is going nowhere until 2021.
“Whenever people see me in the street I always say, ‘This is my home’. I’m going nowhere,” Ozil told The Athletic as quoted by Goal.
“I have a contract until the summer of 2021 and I will be staying until then,” he added.
“When I signed the new deal, I thought about it very carefully and said it was one of the most important decisions of my footballing career. I didn’t want to stay for just one or two more years, I wanted to commit my future to Arsenal and the club wanted me to do the same.
“You can go through difficult times, like this, but that is no reason to run away and I’m not going to. I’m here until at least 2021.”
Ozil further said that he wants to stay as he loves playing for Arsenal.
“I said that Arsene Wenger was a big factor in me joining Arsenal — and he was — but ultimately I signed for the club. Even when Arsene announced he was leaving, I wanted to stay because I love playing for Arsenal and that’s why I’ve been here for six years.
“When I moved from Real Madrid, it was a really tough time for Arsenal. But I always believed in what we could do and together we delivered. More recently things have been difficult and a lot has changed. But I’m proud to be an Arsenal player, a fan and I’m happy here,” he said.