Mesut Ozil is paying the wages of Jerry Quy, the man usually found inside the Gunnersaurus costume, and he has taken on some of the mascot’s duties. Arsenal’s best-paid player is now the cheerleader in chief on matchdays.
Not at the ground, however, but on Twitter, where his prominence highlights the reality that Arsenal are giving him £350,000 ($455,000) a week not to play. Ozil will not face Dundalk on Thursday or Manchester United on Sunday because Arsenal did not name him in their 25-man Europa and Premier League squads.
If there can feel a pointed edge to some of his largely encouraging comments on Twitter – he tipped James Maddison, a creator, a No10 and a kindred spirit, to score against Arsenal last weekend – publicly Mikel Arteta has to endorse his actions.
“I don't follow the social media but I always expect everybody that's involved in our organisation to support the team every time we play,” said the manager who has ostracised Ozil.
Arteta has avoided giving Ozil another PR win. The Spaniard is rather more concerned, however, with the players at his disposal; or, to be precise, those he hopes are.
David Luiz came off in the defeat to Leicester with a thigh injury, will miss the Dundalk game and is a “big doubt” for the trip to Old Trafford.
Arsenal both have a surfeit of centre-backs and a shortage. Arteta has eight but Sokratis Papastathopoulos, like Ozil, is not even eligible.
Pablo Mari, Rob Holding and Calum Chambers are all sidelined. There is the intriguing chance of a belated debut for William Saliba; signed for £25 million in 2019, loaned back to St-Etienne, the French teenager has been at the back of the queue.
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Arsenal v Leicester player ratings
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ARSENAL RATINGS: Bernd Leno, 6 – German goalkeeper made a crucial save late on to prevent the Foxes from doubling their lead, and he could do little to stop Jamie Vardy’s winner. Looked solid throughout, bar a wayward clearance that James Madison almost converted from range. EPA -
Hector Bellerin, 6 –Put his foot in when needed and offered a strong attacking threat throughout, even warming the hands of Kasper Schmeichel in the second half with a volley. Getty -
David Luiz, 6 – Had a quiet evening thanks to the absence of Jamie Vardy and was constantly looking to find Tierney or Bellerin on the flanks. Forced off with injury early in the second half. AP -
Gabriel, 5 – The Frenchman was caught out of position for the winner but he looked as comfortable as ever. Getty -
Kieran Tierney, 7 – The Scot didn’t have much to do at the back but was always a source of invention going forward. Crossing was superb, and often had the beating of Timothy Castagne. Reuters -
Dani Ceballos, 5– Busy but that didn’t equate to any tangible attacking opportunities for his teammates. Was sometimes wasteful in possession. Reuters -
Thomas Partey, 6 – Ghanaian had a solid debut outing and often looked to come deep to get the ball. Displayed an impressive array of passing. Getty -
Granit Xhaka, 5 – Swiss midfielder was caught out of position when Cengiz Under got the wrong side for the winner, but beyond that looked pretty impressive. Getty -
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, 5 – A frustrating striker who looked lost on the right and who received very little service either out wide or when he moved into a more central position late on. PA -
Alexandre Lacazette, 4 – Frenchman was unlucky to see his header disallowed in the first half, but he then squandered two chances he should have put away. Getty -
Bukayo Saka, 5 – Started well and looked lively, but his final ball often let him down and he drifted out of the game in the second half. AP -
SUBS: Shkodran Mustafi (Luiz, 49), 5 –German defender slotted in well alongside Gabriel but he was kept busy by the introduction of Jamie Vardy. AP -
Nicolas Pepe 5 (Saka, 65), – Brought on to try and change the game, Pepe had a quiet cameo. Saw little of the ball and couldn’t influence the play. AFP -
Eddie Nketiah (Tierney, 81), n/a – The youngster received very little service and so had few chances to try and get Arsenal back into the game. EPA -
LEICESTER RATINGS: Kasper Schmeichel, 6 – The Dane seemed the busier of the two goalkeepers but he had few actual saves to make until Hector Bellerin sent a volley his way in the second half. AP -
Wesley Fofana, 7 – Young French defender had another solid performance. He looked comfortable with the ball at his feet and kept Arsenal’s attacking players at bay. Getty -
Jonny Evans, 7 – A typically assured performance from the experienced centre-back. He made a crucial block to deny Bellerin’s square pass which would have otherwise been a tap-in for Lacazette. Getty -
Christian Fuchs, 6 – Quiet but solid performance and looked composed on the ball and was rarely troubled by Arsenal’s attack. AP -
Timothy Castagne, 5 – The defender had a tough first half playing against Bukayo Saka, but grew into the game and looked dangerous when going forward. Getty -
Youri Tielemans, 7 – Belgian midfielder looked class, displaying quality vision throughout and setting Cengiz Under free for the winning goal. Reuters -
Nampalys Mendy, 6 – Continues to show great promise and grew into the game, winning the ball back and enabling his more attacking teammates to get forward. Getty -
James Justin, 6 – The 22-year-old looked solid and while he looked at ease doing his defensive duties, he also looks to be growing in confidence when going forward. AP -
Dennis Praet, 6 – Busy in midfield and superb when it came to putting the home side under pressure. Lacks the attacking class of Tielemans and Mendy, but he does his job well. AFP -
James Maddison, 6 – Twice tried his luck from range and though he failed to threaten Bernd Leno, he looks to be getting back to his swashbuckling best after recovering from injury. AP -
Harvey Barnes, 5 – Lone striker had a frustrating evening. He struggled to make any real headway, while Vardy’s performance was electric in comparison. Getty -
SUBS: Jamie Vardy (Praet, 60), 8 – Just loves to play against Arsenal. His introduction sparked the game into life and he headed home from Under’s cross to win the game. Could have had another late on. Reuters -
Cengiz Under (Barnes, 75), 7 – Winger looked dangerous, getting in behind the Arsenal backline and causing trouble with his pace. His cross was inch perfect for Vardy to nod home the winner. Getty -
Marc Albrighton (Madison, 85), n/a – The wide player came on to help close the game out and he did so effectively, retaining possession and setting up Vardy who came close to a second. AFP
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Shkodran Mustafi may generate less excitement but he was a regular last season and returned as a substitute against Leicester after three months out with a hamstring injury.
Much like Luiz, the German is a much-mocked player with a history of errors who Arteta has encouraged and enabled to excel, albeit amid the odd error.
“I've been really happy with Musti since I joined and the progress that he's made, the performances that he's made,” he said. “We tried to help the players as much as possible and to try and give them the right solutions.”
Arsenal have tried to sell Mustafi in the past; now he may be the answer for them. The £35 million man is in the last year of his deal but an extension is possible. “If I could stay at Arsenal, it would of course mean a lot to me,” said Mustafi. “I respect this club and it is a huge club.”
A meeting with Dundalk, the 2019 League of Ireland champions, offers Arteta a chance to experiment further forward.
Reiss Nelson, who volunteered to take Arsenal’s first penalty in the Community Shield shootout against Liverpool but who has only played 73 minutes of football since then, could start.
Arteta had planned to loan the 20-year-old out but explained: “Reiss was really convinced that he wanted to fight to stay here. And when you see that willingness and that passion and that security in a player, you feel tempted to keep him even though you know that opportunities are going to be restricted. But things can change quickly.”
Arsenal’s lack of goals – only five teams have fewer in the Premier League – offers an incentive to anyone who can add that incision. “It's the role of everybody,” Arteta added.
“It is mind to give the right solutions to attack better.” That, of course, used to be part of Ozil’s job but he will be tweeting as others are playing.
