Unai Emery: Bournemouth intensity behind Ozil omission

Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil was left on the bench at Bournemouth due to Unai Emery's worries over how he would handle a "demanding" match.

Published : Nov 26, 2018 01:03 IST

Mesut Ozil was an unused substitute in Arsenal's 2-1 win over Bournemouth Sunday.
Mesut Ozil was an unused substitute in Arsenal's 2-1 win over Bournemouth Sunday.
lightbox-info

Mesut Ozil was an unused substitute in Arsenal's 2-1 win over Bournemouth Sunday.

Unai Emery cited concern over Bournemouth's intense approach as the reason he overlooked Mesut Ozil in Arsenal's 2-1 win at the Vitality Stadium .

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner in the 67th minute to extend the visitor's unbeaten run to 17 matches in all competitions.

Playmaker Ozil watched the entire 90 minutes from the bench and was not present as the other substitutes warmed up half-time.

The 30-year-old has not always been an automatic starter under Emery this season and could struggle to win back his place after Arsenal successfully switched to a three-man defence on Sunday.

"We thought about how we can be better in the match," Emery explained in his post-match news conference.

"With a very demanding match physically, with [Bournemouth's] intensity against us, we decided [to leave Ozil out].

"But every player is important. Also, we tried with three centre-backs. It's another opportunity to improve and find our best performance."

The Gunners' next Premier League assignment is a north London derby date with Tottenham at Emirates Stadium.

An Arsenal victory would move it level on 30 points with Spurs, but its head coach is focused solely on the preceding Europa League trip to Ukrainian side Vorskla.

"We are playing Thursday in the Europa League and it's important also," he told Sky Sports .

"At the moment we're first in the group and we want to finish first after the six matches. We are going to think about that.

"Sunday is a very important match, very big match for us and also for the Premier League it's very important. It's the first competition for us.

"We are going to prepare our way, little by little, step by step, think first about Thursday and then Sunday."

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment