Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has faulted claims by Mesut Ozil’s agent, Dr Erkut Sogut, that he has not been honest over the situation involving the World Cup winner.
Ozil, 32, has been left out of the Gunners’ Premier League and Europa League squads, and it appears unlikely he will ever feature for the club as he is in the final year of his contract.
The German hit out at the Arsenal hierarchy this week, prompting the Gunners boss to respond by admitting he “failed” to get the best out of every player.
But those comments did not satisfy Ozil’s agent who took aim at Arteta and said: “Arsenal fans deserve an honest explanation” of the situation.
Reacting ahead of Arsenal’s clash with Leicester City on Sunday, Mikel Arteta insists he has been honest with Ozil throughout the process.
“If you have to lead, they have to trust you,” Arteta said.
“In order for them to trust you, you have to be honest. You have to be clear and you have to be able to tell people, face to face, the good and bad news.
“Then you have to be consistent in what you say, the demands you put in and what you apply.
“When things happen, you applaud them and then when they don’t, there are consequences. Then you create a culture and within that culture people have to be accountable.
“People have to step up and they have to demand the standards we need of each other from this football club in order to be successful.”
