Unai Emery opens up on why he dropped Mesut Ozil so regularly at Arsenal

Former Germany international Mesut Ozil only appeared in seven Arsenal matches under Unai Emery this season before the Spaniard was sacked

Unai Emery has explained that he didn't play Mesut Ozil regularly at Arsenal because he's not physical enough for the Premier League.

Spaniard Emery was sacked as Arsenal manager at the end of November after a run of seven matches without a victory in all competitions.

Ozil only appeared in seven games for the Gunners this season before Emery's dismissal - with only four of them coming in the Premier League.

Emery was criticised for constantly leaving the former Germany international out while the side was struggling, but the ex- Paris Saint Germain has revealed the reasons behind his decision.

Emery told Marca:"He's a very good player, that's clear. But the physical demands in the Premier League are high.

"His performances are unpredictable. He's a bit below the top players at the moment.

"Sometimes Arsenal play better with him but other times he doesn't make such a difference."

Ozil has also recently spoken about the frustrations of not playing under Emery, and what has changed since Mikel Arteta replaced him.

"I had a hard time, especially with the previous coach Unai Emery, but now everything has changed, and I am very happy with everything," Ozil said.

"I'm playing regularly and everything is going well.

"Arteta, as I said in my previous interviews, it was surprising to many people that he adopted the club in such a short time.

"He's doing a good job. He's hungry for success. Everything about him is positive.

"Arteta's story is a bit different because I don't remember when he quit football, but it hasn't been over that long. In this way, players can understand more easily."

Emery explained the reasons why things went down hill at the Emirates.

He added: "I am clear about my diagnosis and we did good things there. I think we had a good first year, leading two competitions well as Europa League and Premier League.

"The process was good. When we played possession, we did it; when we had to press, we did it. And we were competitive, playing as the game required. With moments of possession game and moments of three quick touches.

"This second year, we have not played well; we have not defended well; We have not been competitive; We did not transmit. And I told the players myself. There were several problems: four captains; the Ozil-Kolasinac case; Pepe's signing, which needs time to be that of France. We didn't play well, that's for sure.

"That brought us bad results, there was no improvement, the fans focused on me and they threw me out."