Arsenal ‘step up’ efforts to sell Ozil to fund transfer spree

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Arsenal are increasing efforts to sell Mesut Ozil this summer in an attempt to raise transfer funds, according to reports.

Manager Unai Emery is looking to overhaul his squad after a disappointing end to the season which saw the Gunners miss out on a place in the Champions League for the third consecutive season.

After finishing fifth in the Premier League, Arsenal’s hopes of qualifying for the European competition were ended as they lost 4-1 to Chelsea in the Europa League final.

That failure has had a major impact on the club’s finances, and The Sun reports that the club could be hit by a pre-tax loss of more than £50 million, meaning there is increasing pressure on Unai Emery to sell the German midfielder in order to increase funds.

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After already losing Aaron Ramsey, Stephan Lichtsteiner and Danny Welbeck for free, the Gunners boss will be given just £45m to spend on new faces, meaning he will need to sell players to increase his budget.

And according to the publication, Ozil is top of Emery’s list of players he wants to leave the north London outfit in the coming weeks, especially with his significant wages.

The 30-year-old is the top earner at the club and is believed to be on wages of around £350,000-per-week.

However, with two years remaining on the player’s current contract, the club face a difficult task getting Ozil off their books.

The Gunners reportedly want £30m for the former Real Madrid man and, although Turkish trio Galatasaray, Fenerbahce and Besiktas are all thought to be interested, it is claimed that they are unable to pay the asking price or the wages.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Skhodran Mustafi are also believed to be among the names Emery could look to offload this summer .

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