DUBAI // Mesut Ozil says he plans to wait until after this summer's European Championship to decide on committing his long-term future to Arsenal.
The German playmaker, who led the 2015/16 Premier League in assists, is reportedly set to be offered a contract extension thought to be worth £200,000 (Dh1 million) per week – a deal that would make him the highest paid player at the club.
Ozil, 27, joined Arsenal in September 2013 from Real Madrid and still has two seasons remaining on his current contract. He was a key member of the team who on Sunday pipped rivals Tottenham to second place in the Premier League, but says he has now shifted focus to helping world champions Germany triumph at next month's Euros in France.
Speaking Monday during a visit to the Arsenal Soccer School Dubai at The Sevens Stadium, Ozil was asked about the possibility of an extension, but replied: “I still have two years contract with Arsenal, as you know, and we will be in talks with the club and we’ll see what happens in the future.
“But as I said, now I’m concentrating on Euro 2016 in France, which is very important for me and my team after the last World Cup. Then later on, I will see what I do with Arsenal.”
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At the beginning of the year, Arsenal were frontrunners for a first Premier League title in 12 years, but a series of disappointing performances in mid-January and then again in February allowed Leicester City to break away from them at the summit.
At one point, Arsenal took eight points from six home matches – a run that angered the club’s supporters and prompted calls for manager Arsene Wenger to go.
Ozil pinpointed February’s Uefa Champions League last-16 first leg defeat to Barcelona as a seminal moment in his side’s season. Following the 2-0 home reverse to the Spaniards, the London club took a solitary point from their next three matches in the Premier League, while they also exited the FA Cup, as holders, at the hands of Watford.
“We dropped a lot of points which we shouldn’t have dropped against smaller teams and that was the point in the season where we were just not strong enough as a team to take a one point sometimes and go ahead,” Ozil said.
“Especially after the Barcelona game, we lost points. That was the time in the team where we weren’t good enough to take the points and go.”
Photo gallery: Mesut Ozil visits Arsenal Soccer School at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai
Having eventually finished 10 points behind Leicester, Arsenal are expected to improve the squad this summer to ensure their challenge does not fade again. They have been linked with Borussia Monchengladbach’s Swiss midfielder Granit Xhaka, while a top-class centre forward should be a priority.
Ozil said he expected the club to be busy in the next transfer window, but warned that Arsenal’s main competitors will be doing the same.
“We have a good team, a strong team with good players and strong characters, and I know as well other teams will prepare themselves for the new season with new transfers and will be stronger than last season,” he said.
“We will also be stronger with new players coming in and that would just make us much better than now. This is a decision that needs to be taken by the responsible people inside the club, not by me, so we will wait and see what will happen.”
Ozil would not be drawn on Wenger’s future, again saying that is up to the club and the Frenchman to decide. Yet he said Arsenal’s ability to seal second place in the table – Sunday’s 4-0 victory against Aston Villa lifted them a point above Tottenham – meant his side concluded the campaign on a positive note.
“Firstly, it was important to qualify directly to the Champions League,” he said. “To be second in the last game of the season and to also be on top of Tottenham was also good for us and good for our fans. It was a good finish to the season.”
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