Mikel Arteta says his "conscience is calm" after leaving Mesut Ozil out of his Premier League squad and insists the decision was made solely for football reasons.
The former Germany international was not included in the 25-man group for the 2020-21 season when it was submitted on Tuesday after also being left out of the Gunners' Europa League squad earlier in October.
Ozil, who has not played for the club since a match against West Ham on March 7, expressed his disappointment in the decision on Wednesday, posting on social media: "I pledged my loyalty and allegiance to the club that I love, Arsenal, and it saddens me that this has not been reciprocated."
Ozil's influence has waned since providing 19 assists and creating 28 big chances in 35 Premier League outings during the 2015-16 season, dipping to nine, eight, two and two in terms of assists in the following four campaigns.
Last season, however, he created 2.36 chances for every 90 minutes he was on the pitch, comfortably more than the second-placed player on the list, Nicolas Pepe (1.79).
That was not enough to impress Arteta, though, who says Ozil was given every chance to force his way into his thinking following his appointment as Arsenal boss in December 2019.
"Everybody is free to express his feeling," he told a media conference. "What I can say from my side is that it's just a football decision. My conscience is very calm.
