Mesut Ozil’s agent has questioned the loyalty of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after the former Arsenal striker joined Chelsea in the summer.
Aubameyang left Arsenal under a cloud in January after being frozen out of the first team by Mikel Arteta. The Gabon international was stripped of the club’s captaincy and forced to train with the reserves after falling out with Arteta over disciplinary breaches.
He left for Barcelona in the January transfer window and scored 13 goals in 24 appearances, but returned to the Premier League just six months later when he joined Chelsea in a £12.1million deal on deadline day. Aubameyang cited “unfinished business” in the Premier League and declared himself “really happy” to sign for the Blues, despite them being rivals of his former club.
Dr Erkut Sogut oversaw Ozil’s move from Arsenal to Fenerbahce last year and the following one to Istanbul Basaksehir in July. The German playmaker’s agent says Ozil would never follow in Aubameyang’s footsteps by considering a return to the Premier League due to his strength of feeling for Arsenal.
"He could never play for another English club, he's not like Aubameyang,” Dr Sogut told Tribal Football. “He loved his time at Arsenal and is still in contact with a lot of players, not least [Bukayo] Saka – they have a special relationship.”
Ozil spent eight years with Arsenal, contributing 44 goals and 78 assists in 254 appearances but, like Aubameyang, his time with the club had a sour end. The midfielder fell out with Arteta and was left out of Arsenal’s squads for the Premier League and Europa League and encouraged to leave, partly due to his £350,000-a-week contract.
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Dr Sogut told Mirror Football earlier this year that Ozil had previously been offered the chance to stay in England, but refused it out of loyalty to Arsenal.
He said: "He always said 'I'm a Gunner in and out' and if there was a discussion to go to another Premier League club, even after two or three years when he was at Arsenal, before the contract negotiations to get a new one, it would have never, ever happened. It was impossible for him. He was like 'Look, if you're a Gunner, you can't go to play for another Premier League club.
Dr Sogut believes his client was treated unfairly by Arteta. "I just ask for fair treatment like with any other player," he said. "But to not be in the squad at all, that was a couple of days before the window was closing and it was too late for us to react anyway.
"Maybe three days, four days before when I was told he might not be in the squad at all, he might not be listed. So that was a surprise. First for the Europa League and then for the Premier League as well, that was not expected by us at all. The coach didn't want him in the squad and the player has to accept that, what can you do?"
