Mesut Ozil has defended his decision to reject a pay cut at Arsenal and believes that various "people have been trying for two years to destroy me" in public.
During an interview with The Athletic, the World Cup winner insisted he won't be forced out of the club before his contract expires next year.
Ozil has not played a single minute for Mikel Arteta's side since the restart.
Since the Premier League resumed, the 31-year-old didn't feature in 10 league games and Arsenal's FA Cup triumph, with Arteta stating that "pure football reasons" were the rationale for his decision.
The former Real Madrid midfielder, who earns £350,000-a-week at the Emirates Stadium, was one of the Arsenal players who turned down the year-long pay cut of 12.5%.
Here's what he had to say on that decision:
"As players, we all wanted to contribute. But we needed more information and many questions were unanswered. Everyone was fine with a deferral while there was so much uncertainty - I would have been OK to take a bigger share - and then a cut if required, once the football and financial outlook was clearer.
"But we were rushed into it without proper consultation. For anyone in this situation, you have a right to know everything, to understand why it is happening and where the money is going. But we didn't get enough details, we just had to give a decision.
Ozil also said he had to think about his family as well as his charities before making the decision to refuse the pay cut. He also believes the criticism that came his way was unjustified.
“It was far too quick for something so important and there was a lot of pressure. This was not fair, especially for the young guys, and I refused. I had a baby at home and have commitments to my family here, in Turkey and in Germany — to my charities, too, and also a new project we started to support people in London that was from the heart and not for publicity.
“People who know me know exactly how generous I am and, as far as I’m aware, I was not the only player who rejected the cut in the end, but only my name came out. I guess that’s because it is me and people have been trying for two years to destroy me, to make me unhappy, to push an agenda they hope will turn the supporters against me and paint a picture that is not true," he said.
Regarding his future, Ozil was insistent that he'll honour the contract extension which he signed in 2018.
The attacker featured 23 times for Arsenal this season in all competitions, scoring once and creating two goals.
“My position is clear. I’m here through to the last day of our agreement and I’ll give everything I have for this club. Situations like these will never break me, they only make me stronger. I showed in the past that I can come back into the team and I will show it again."
