Mesut Ozil: Arsenal boss Unai Emery says youngsters deserved to start ahead of midfielder
- From the section Arsenal
Arsenal boss Unai Emery left midfielder Mesut Ozil out of his squad for Thursday's 4-0 Europa League win over Standard Liege because other players "deserved it more".
Gabriel Martinelli, 18, scored twice, while 20-year-old Joe Willock and Dani Ceballos, 23, also found the net.
Ozil, 30, has now been left out of the squad for the Gunners' past two games.
"We have to give the chances to the young players and they take them," said Emery.
Arsenal are fourth in the Premier League going into this weekend's fixtures and host Bournemouth on Sunday (14:00 BST).
On Ozil, Emery added: "When I decided he shouldn't be in the squad it's because I think other players deserved it more.
"He needs to continue working. Tomorrow we have training with the players who didn't play, and on Sunday we have another match - and we are going to decide the same.
"Our target is to win on Sunday against Bournemouth and we want to carry on our same way in each match."
Emery picked a youthful starting XI to face Belgian side Standard Liege, making 10 changes to the team that drew 1-1 at Manchester United on Monday.
As well as impressive displays from Brazilian forward Martinelli and English midfielder Willock, Scotland left-back Kieran Tierney, 22, and 19-year-old England Under-21 forward Reiss Nelson also caught the eye.
"They are close to playing for us at the highest levels," added Emery. "They showed they can perform and they can score. They are playing well, it's good."
