Damien Delaney believes that Mesut Ozil's position at Arsenal is under threat due to his lack of effort under manager Mikel Arteta.
Ozil confirmed today that he will not leave Arsenal until his contract expires, and Delaney believes that he knows the reasons behind the fallout.
"From the outside looking in, I can see clearly what has happened here," Delaney said of the situation between Ozil, Arteta and the club.
"Mikel Arteta is of the Pep Guardiola school, the Jurgen Klopp school. These guys are relentless in what they do. Training on a Monday morning, or a match on a Saturday - everything is done at full-throttle.
"Everybody takes part in it, and I know that from speaking to people who have been with Klopp and Pep. Their level of intensity and concentration is through the roof every day, and they expect that out of all of their players. They won't carry any passengers.
"If someone is pulling their weight, even by 1%, that player gets cut. If one player doesn't pull his weight, then it gives the manager a huge dilemma. When you're cracking the whip with the other 24 and someone isn't doing it, then someone is going to put their hand up and say 'Hang on a minute, Mesut didn't do that last week.'
"They set a standard and you live up to it. If you don't, then you are out the side door."
Mesut Ozil
Delaney is saddened to see the situation arise as is, due to Ozil's extraordinary talent.
"Mesut Ozil is a fantastic football player, I genuinely believe that. As a player, he is brilliant at what he does. The weight of his passes, his assists, his movement - everything is brilliant.
"We haven't seen it for the last couple of years, but he really is one of the best that I've played against. During that period with Arsenal, I used to love watching him. Even when I was playing against him, there was a certain amount of admiration."
So what makes playing against a player of Ozil's ability so difficult that it inspires awe?
"He asks questions of you with his positioning, he glides around the pitch, he is super-intelligent and he has the lot.
"But he is a bit of a free spirit, and [Arsene] Wenger tolerated it because Wenger never set a bar for anybody. His motto was 'a happy player is a good player'.
"Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola and Arteta are cut from the same cloth and they wouldn't tolerate it. They would have had Mesut in and said 'I can't be seen to be giving you special treatment'."
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