Mesut Ozil recently rejected a 12.5 per cent pay cut at the Emirates while the rest of the Arsenal players have accepted this decision. And this is why the German has been facing the wrath of many people over the past couple of days.
But now Manchester United legend Roy Keane has come out to support Mesut Ozil explaining why he himself would have refused a pay cut if he was playing for one of the big clubs.
“I’m not sure how I’d have dealt with it, but I’ve got a lot of sympathy for the players out there because, once again, they’re getting criticised,” the former Manchester United captain told Sky Sports, as quoted by The Mirror.
“There are players at the big clubs, with a lot of wealthy owners, who are under pressure to take pay cuts etc… but I wouldn’t take a pay cut from anybody if I was at one of the bigger clubs. You take your wages, and if you want to be generous you go ahead and do it. I don’t think players should feel under pressure from clubs, particularly the bigger clubs, to take pay cuts.
“They’ve signed a contract. I know everyone’s different, but your contract with a club is a personal matter and this idea that all the players have to take a pay cut… I think it’s nonsense.
“I think it’s up to the individual, and if they want to stick to their guns and say ‘listen, I’m sticking with my full wages when we’ve got a billionaire in the background’, then do it. I’m talking about the top clubs here with the really wealthy owners.
“Obviously I have a lot of sympathy for clubs in the lower leagues, you’ve got to make sacrifices of course, but the players near the top… and the clubs with their money… then stick to your guns.”
Is Mesut Ozil doing the right thing?
This decision from Ozil has turned out to be a double-edged sword with many people coming out to bash him while some like Keane has stood beside him.
But one thing for sure, Arsenal have multi-billion dollar owners meaning they should have been one of the last clubs to take such a massive decision.
A number of clubs have chosen to defer their payments for a couple of months which many people think is the more sensible way to deal with this situation right now and the Gunners might very well have walked that same way.
Also, Arsenal have asked their players to take the pay cut for one whole year despite them making lavish plans to spend money in the transfer market this summer – a decision which might not go down too well with many of their current players.
But all said and done, we do sympathise with the North London club since they have not been playing in the Champions League over the last couple of seasons so naturally their finances, as well as their reserves, have taken a big hit.
