Mesut Ozil offers to pay salary of Arsenal mascot Gunnersaurus
In a transfer deadline day deal no-one was ready for, Arsenal spent £45m on Thomas Partey from Atletico Madrid at the same time that their legendary mascot, Gunnersaurus, was relieved of his duties.
The move was seen as a cost-cutting measure at the same time that Partey arrived on a £250,000 per week contract.
Step forward Mesut Ozil, the night in shining armour, to rescue the situation.
The erstwhile playmaker - who has barely featured under Mikel Arteta despite earning in excess of £350,000 per week himself - has offered to pay Gunnersaurus' salary 'as long as he remains an Arsenal player'.
Jerry Quy has played the mascot since 1993 but he was deemed surplus to requirements as fans as unable to attend matches.
But Ozil has responded, tweeting:
It is clear that Ozil's statement is unlikely to go down well within the club given his lack of action and their inability to get the German off the wage bill since signing his contract extension.