Unai Emery has hinted Mesut Ozil is in contention to make his Arsenal comeback against Chelsea this weekend. Following last week’s defeat at West Ham, Arsenal are currently six points adrift of their west London rivals in the race for fourth place and a Champions League qualifying position. Ozil was not included in Emery’s matchday squad for the trip to the London Stadium due to tactical reasons and has not featured for the first team since Boxing Day when he was substituted at half time in the 1-1 draw at Brighton.
Asked whether Ozil would feature this weekend, Emery said: ‘He has injuries, where sometimes he is okay, sometimes not okay. I want every player to be okay for every match and he is the same.. ‘He didn’t play the last game but this Saturday he could possibly be with us. Now he is training consistently. ‘I want every player to give consistency. This is not always easy. What is most important is how he can help us.’ Emery is reported to have told the 30-year-old, who is less than 12 months into the four-year £350,000-a-week deal he signed last February, to find a new club in the summer. The German World Cup winner has no desire, however, to leave north London and has been working hard in the gym to build up his fitness in a bid to convince his manager he deserves a place in his starting XI.
On facing Chelsea, who beat Arsenal 3-2 at Stamford Bridge earlier this season, a game during which Ozil was taken off in the 68th minute with the scores level, Emery added: ‘I want to see the victory first. We are doing two different performances at home and away. ‘We want to find the balance with two moments. We are going to go game by game and the first is Saturday. At home I think we are doing very big matches with a big confidence with our supporters. Chelsea will be a difficult, tough match. It’ll be a good test for us. We wanted to take this match with three points more in the table but our defeat in West Ham doesn’t give us this possibility. Saturday I think I am looking for us to play this match well.’
