I FOUND it fascinating that the story of the Arsenal squad taking a 12.5 per cent pay reduction to assist the club through the financial hardship of the coronavirus crisis made the 10 o’clock news last night.
The simple fact is that whatever our current woes, the Arsenal, are, always have been and always will be, big news.
Mesut Ozil, who has refused to take a pay cut, with Arsenal boss Mikel ArtetaCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
The official statement from the club is wholly positive and gives the impression that the coaches and playing staff have accepted the situation as a group and are keen to support the Arsenal Family.
It also points out that future success on the pitch will earn the players and staff the money back and more which can only be positive.
It was not so long ago that top-flight player contracts were heavily centred around draw and win bonuses and success on the pitch week to week made a significant difference to a player’s take home pay.
Now obviously those days are largely in the past, with the ‘add-ons’ often cited more likely to be linked to league positions, trophies or European qualification.
Consequently, the fact that the collective can all enhance their lot by performing on the pitch, one would hope, should be beneficial.
The only negative that has emerged subsequently is the claim that three players, including by far Arsenal’s highest earner, Mesut Ozil, have not accepted the collective decision.
I do not personally feel the fact that Ozil, so often a divisive figure among Arsenal supporters, is the one individual named is that significant.
I feel this is more because his often vocal agent Dr Erkut Sogat has decided to speak out.
But let us not forget the same man, also revealed Ozil and his wife, decided to fund a thousand children’s operations when they wed last year.
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The ex-Germany international undoubtedly selflessly uses his wealth for the good of others and that should be remembered.
Ozil and his agent have just asked for more time to assess the medium-term impact of Covid-19 and have not ruled out accepting a reduction in salary.
But of course, the very fact that this story has come out will not please most Arsenal fans, many of whom are far more negatively impacted financially.
More so because his performances on the pitch, for the majority, do no seem to justify his £350,000-a-week wages.
Personally, I am happier that the majority have decided to support the club and would prefer to focus on that, rather than highlight one individual or three individuals who seem out of sync with the group.
That is because it is the collective who we need pulling together with their coaching staff to get Arsenal back where we want them to be.
Ironically however, with his decision or indecision, depending on how you look at it, Ozil may just have inadvertently assisted Arteta and the club hierarchy in the summer rebuild planning.
The club will need to sell and reduce the wage bill to allow the coach to create the squad he needs and a highly paid 31-year-old, whose best years, however good they were, are behind him, may not now be in that plan.
Piers Morgan blasts footballer Mesut Ozil for not accepting Arsenal’s coronavirus pay cut proposal
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
