'Loyalty is hard to come by nowadays' - Defiant Mesut Ozil hits back after squad exclusion

Mesut Ozil says he "will not let eighth season at Arsenal end like this" after he was left out of the Gunners' 25-man Premier League squad on Tuesday.

Ozil has taken to social media to criticise the decision made by the club, saying he is "deeply disappointed" to be omitted and that "loyalty is hard to come by".

He wrote: "This is a difficult message to write to the Arsenal fans that I've played for over the past few years. I'm really deeply disappointed by the fact that I have not been registered for the Premier League season for the time being.

He continued: "I will continue to train as best as I can and wherever possible use my voice against inhumanity and justice.

“Upon signing my contract in 2018, I pledged my loyalty and allegiance to the club that I love, Arsenal, and it saddens me that this has not been reciprocated.

Ozil continued: “Before the coronavirus break I was really happy with the development under our new coach Mikel Arteta - we’ve been on a positive way and I would say my performances were on a really good level.

“But then things changed, again, and I was not longer allowed to play football for Arsenal.

“London still feels like home, I still have many good friends in this team, and I still feel a strong connection with the fans of this club.

“No matter what, I will keep fighting for my chance and not let my 8th season at Arsenal end like this.

“I can promise you that this hard decision won’t change anything in my mindset - I will continue to train as best as I can and wherever possible use my voice against inhumanity and for justice.”

Ozil, who reportedly earns £350,000-a-week, saw his last Arsenal appearance come on March 7th and he is out of contract next summer.

At the start of October he gave up some of his salary to help keep Arsenal mascot Gunnersaurus at the club, who was initially sacked as part of the club's cost-cutting measures which saw them make 55 redundancies in August.