Former Arsenal midfielder Liam Brady insists ex-Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis made a mistake by not allowing Mesut Ozil to leave the club on a free transfer three years ago.
Ozil, who joined the Gunners from Real Madrid back in September 2013, has been frozen out at the Emirates Stadium by Mikel Arteta this season, suggesting that he will not play for the club again as he enters the final few months of his current contract.
The former Germany international has not played for the club since March and was not named in Arsenal's Premier League or Europa League squads this season.
Though Arteta has always insisted his decision to axe Ozil from his plans has purely be down to footballing reasons, a lot of Arsenal supporters have been left surprised by the Spaniard's decision to freeze him out of his plans completely, especially when the club has struggled for goals in recent months.
However, Arteta's decision to stand his ground and not allow Ozil a route back into the fold has been praised by Brady, who played for the Gunners between 1973 and 1980, as he insists he is "not a good guy" to have around the squad.
"I don't blame Arteta over Ozil," Brady told the Keys and Gray podcast. "He gave Ozil plenty of chances & he performed for a couple of months. Ozil just reverted back to type.
"He's not a good guy in the dressing room, he's not a good guy on the pitch. I've no problem with Mikel bombing him."
With Ozil's Arsenal career destined to come to an end in just a few months time, Brady has blasted former Gunners chief Gazidis for his decision to not offload the midfielder several years ago when he had the chance.
Although Brady insisted he would have left on a free transfer, the former Gunners star pinpointed the fact that the money the club has spent on his wages could have been used on adding new talent to the squad.
Brady added: "Gazidis should have let him go on a free three years ago and we should have spent what we are paying him over three years, £50million? – that we could have invested in a good young player instead of having him around the place."
Ozil last played for the club on Saturday, March 7, featuring in a 1-0 win over West Ham United.
In total, the attacking-midfielder has racked up 254 appearances in all competitions for the Gunners, scoring 44 goals and registering 77 assists.
