Gary Neville has been discussing why Unai Emery may have decided to hand Arsenal star Mesut Ozil the captain’s armband in recent weeks.
The former Manchester United star spoke on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football programme ahead of Manchester City’s win against Tottenham Hotspur and delivered some analysis on Ozil’s responsibilities at Arsenal.
Neville drew comparisons between Jose Mourinho’s management of Paul Pogba at United, indicating that Unai Emery has handed Ozil the armband in recent weeks in order to provoke a reaction. The pundit, as quoted by the Mirror, said:
Paul Pogba was given the captaincy at the start of the season after a public spat. Same with Ozil at Arsenal. Emery left him out for a couple of games. It is almost like they are giving them the captaincy to get more of a performance out of them. That would never have happened 20 years ago. You had to earn the captaincy at a football club.
Ozil captained his side in their 3-1 win against Leicester City earlier on in October, with the former Germany international playing a starring role, and also retained the honour as Arsenal were held to a 2-2 draw by Crystal Palace.
The former Real Madrid star reacted with frustration as Emery substituted him in the second half of the draw at Selhurst Park but will be keen to continue as the captain when Arsenal face Liverpool on Saturday evening.
