Mesut Ozil leaves Arsenal: the why and the what now...

This has been a very good few days for Mikel Arteta.

A convincing 3-0 win over Newcastle was followed by good news on the injury front, with both Thomas Partey and Gabriel Martenelli returning to training (with Partey even fit enough to play against Newcastle). He has also overseen the termination of ageing centre-half Sokratis, but at last, Arteta has finally been able to cut the unwanted Mesut Ozil and his high wage bill from Arsenal.

Today's announcement sees Ozil depart Arsenal after eight years at the Emirates, who is expected to sign for Turkish side Fenerbahce on a three-and-a-half year deal on Friday. But what does this mean for Arsenal?

Ozil made 254 appearances for Arsenal, following his move from Real Madrid in 2013. In that time he scored 44 goals and registered 77 assists for the Gunners.

Why has he gone for free?

Like Diego Costa in December (you can read our story on him here and our story about the nature of free agency here), Ozil has seen the remainder of his contract terminated by Arsenal. The former German international has not played for the Gunners since March and was not registered in neither the Premier League nor Europa League squads this season.

Although frozen out by Arteta, Ozil has still been paid £350,000 per week and the club will have been desperate to remove him from the wage bill. The Gunners have saved about £8.4 million by allowing Ozil to break free of his contract six months early - this is great business for Arsenal.

It frees up a massive chunk of the wage budget that could be better allocated elsewhere - perhaps for tying down the newest generation of young talent quickly developing at the club...

Whilst many think Ozil could still do a good job at Arsenal (especially given the problems they have had with creativity), fans must understand that Arteta is attempting to mould this team in order to get them playing how he wants them to play football - decisions like this are not easy and should earn the respect of the footballing world.

What next for Arsenal? Will They replace Ozil?

The big question is whether Arsenal will replace him before the close of the January window. Do they even need to, following the emergence of Emile Smith-Rowe?

I firmly believe that any future business will be determined by Arteta's choice of formation.

Despite Arteta stating in December that his vision for the team sees them line up in a 4-3-3, we have seen Arsenal stick to a 4-2-3-1 in recent weeks and months.

Whilst attitude and other factors certainly had their part to play, one of the reasons that Ozil was frozen out was because Arteta didn't like the idea of lining up with a classic number 10. Instead, he preferred the idea (even if it was not put into practice) of playing three central midfielders.

Smith-Rowe has certainly made a case for the inclusion of a creative midfielder - he's been nothing short of exceptional since getting into the side on a more regular basis.

Emile Smith-Rowe has emerged as a potential long-term option for Arteta following a string of impressive performances.

However, it doesn't take a footballing genius to see why Smith-Rowe makes Arsenal a better side - he is by far and away the most creative midfielder they have at the club. With all due respect to the youngster, I feel he looks especially great at the moment because of a serious lack of competition, although nobody can deny that there is some serious natural talent there.

If Arteta wants to play 4-3-3:

Should Arteta look to sign a creative midfielder that can play a little deeper (think of Saul Niguez, Houssem Aouar, maybe even Leandro Parades), then he would be able to play the 4-3-3 that he wants to.

The problem is, how many players fit that bill that Arsenal could legitimately land? Of course, they are Arsenal - they do still hold a certain draw for players. But as of right now, they are in 10th and not looking hopeful to challenge for anything this season, unless they throw everything at the cups.

The decision to sign a new midfielder will be heavily influenced by Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta's choice of formation.

I think if Arteta wants to play 4-3-3, he should wait until the summer - no top players will want to leave their clubs to finish mid-table with Arsenal this season.

There is hope however, Arsenal fans! Despite being underwhelming last season, players such as Thomas Partey were still attracted to Arsenal and the project being undertaken there, so it is very possible a player of real quality could come in in the summer.

Thomas Partey swapped Atletico Madrid for Arsenal in the summer in a high-profile transfer.

If he plays with a number 10:

If he beats his stubborn side down and sticks with what is working, the 4-2-3-1, then Arteta should seek to add classic number 10 to his squad. Smith-Rowe has been excellent, but he is young and, if mismanaged, could very quickly burn out.

Even if Arteta shows faith in the young midfielder by keeping him as his first choice in that position, there still isn't enough depth in that position. Arsenal need to sign a replacement - Ozil's salary frees up funds for a transfer.

News from the Arsenal camp suggests that Real Madrid's Martin Odegaard is being pursued by the Gunners on a loan basis. This one makes sense for me, he's a very good player, but doesn't blow Smith-Rowe out of the water in terms of natural talent, meaning both would be pushing hard for a place in the team. This can only bring the best out of both players.

Going for a loan (with an option to buy) seems to be the best way of doing business in all of football at the moment, so if Arsenal manage to pull this off it would be incredibly good business; low-risk with potential for high-reward.

They would also do well to beat Real Sociedad to his signature, which would illustrate the pulling power that Arsenal still hold.

Norwegian Martin Odegaard has seen his game time limited at Real Madrid.

If that deal can't be done, an obvious candidate is Emiliano Buendia of Norwich. A player we've spoken about before here at VARfootballBlog - the versatile Argentine would provide real quality to the starting XI, or even adding to a position that desperately needs cover.

Another avenue looking to be explored by Arsenal is that of Morgan Sanson of Marseille. He's recorded three assists and scored two goals in 17 appearances in France this season, but he is almost certainly joining Aston Villa next week. As Manchester United found out with Moises Caicedo, interest from a big club can often be ignored if a concrete offer from another team (as Brighton have made) can often win the signature of a player.

Is money a problem for Arsenal?

Arsenal value both Buendia and Sanson at around £22 million (although both selling clubs view their players closer to the £40 million mark), so neither would break the bank for the Gunners.

Despite outrageous fees not really being on the table, it does constitute enough money for the Arsenal board to question Arteta's commitment to the transfer - would they really spend upwards of £20 million on a rotation option that won't be starting games?

I don't think Arsenal will move in the market unless they are assured by Arteta that they are signing a player who improves the starting XI. For that to happen, Smith-Rowe would have to make way.

Buendia is a wonderful player and an even better professional, the exact type of player that Arteta is wanting to bring into the Arsenal.

However, it is his professionalism and loyalty that is putting his transfer in doubt - he has stated multiple times since the start of the window that he feels he 'owes' Norwich City, and won't be leaving the club in January.

It remains to be seen whether Arsenal will move for Norwich's Emiliano Buendia.

So, what should we expect from an Ozil-less Arsenal?

In terms of transfers, as above, Arsenal will only sign someone in January if Arteta commits to playing a number 10. If not, I expect a more balanced 'number six' type player to join in the summer when there are a few more options available. I wouldn't expect Arsenal to miss Ozil, despite being a good servant to the club.

Taking into consideration the recent release of Greek centre-back Sokratis, it seems that Arteta is being allowed the space to clean out the players that don't fit his project - similar to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United.

Arteta is keen to clear out ageing players on high contracts in order to allow the abundance of young talent at Arsenal to flourish, a similar approach to that of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United.

There is a really exciting group of youngsters developing at Arsenal, and keeping around 32 year-old 'has beens' is not the environment Arteta wants to allow them to grow up in. I expect this season to be pretty disappointing, but I think with a few more faces coming into the club come the summer, we could see the Arteta project in all of its glory.