1. The swan song
Given our dearth of creativity, if we fail to secure a creative midfielder this January, granting Mesut Ozil a prominent role in the team would not be that illogical.
Emile Smith Rowe is young and can't possibly play all the minutes, while Thomas Partey will surely keep things together at the back to let Ozil do his thing further up the pitch.
Mesut should still be very sound and sometimes spectacular with the ball at his feet: finishing his Arsenal career with a flourish will send nostalgic shivers down the fans' spine.
2. The bit-part role
This scenario will see the German included in matchday squad vs teams which favour low blocks. At home we might even see Ozil start matches, while away from the Emirates he can be used from the bench if things don't go well.
We saw something of a kind happen during Arsene Wenger's last season. Ozil was spared some long trips up north and games against top-6 teams but our manager still managed to squeeze some juice out of Mesut in most matches.
3. Dead man walking
The least appealing but perhaps the most likely course of events. Mikel Arteta made a statement of intent when he dropped Ozil from the squad in October and his latest remarks make us think he doesn't see Mesut as part of any future plans.
In which case we'll witness something akin to the end of last season. Ozil will be granted a place in the squad out of simple courtesy but will hardly be present on matchdays. This will prompt further questions from the media after every defeat, so we think Arteta will be keen to avoid this scenario.
