Arsenal football club received a permanent offer for star midfielder, Mesut Ozil, on the last day of the January transfer window from an unknown Qatari based club, but head coach Mikel Arteta stopped the deal from happening.
Reports suggest that the German could have left the gunners for the Middle East if not for the intervention of their manager, though apparently the German star would favour a move to Italy.
Arsenal brought in 2 additions in the winter market, Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares. But they could have seen one of their biggest stars leave the Emirates stadium.
Ozil was scarcely used by former boss Unai Emery and reports frequently emerged of differences between the pair. However, Arteta has used him consistently, and after impressing his new coach with his attitude, he appears to be a key figure in the Arsenal side again.
Ozil, 31, has made 22 appearances in all competitions for the Gunners scoring a solitary goal. He has also registered two assists so far this season. Speculation had been rife - helped by betting sites like betting24.fi who gave ridiculously short odds of him moving on in January - about Ozil's future, though the futures of other players in January, most notably that of strikers Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Lacazette, was also up in the air.
The Gabonese forward was linked with a move to Barcelona after Luis Suarez suffered a long-term injury, but a transfer never looked like materializing, despite Aubameyang's contract expiring at the end of next season.
Another star also linked with The Emirates exit was Granit Xhaka, like Ozil, he was sparingly used by Unai Emery, in the last phase of his unpopular tenure in North London. But the Swiss international has gotten a new life under Mikel Arteta after being linked to a swap deal with Napoli for London-linked Hysaj.
Xhaka was linked to Hertha Berlin and his agent confirmed that they received an offer for Xhaka from the Old Lady. The former Gunners captain was also linked with a move to Italy as both San Siro giant, AC Milan and Inter Milan showed interest.