Wednesday 15 February 2017 09:52, UK
Mats Hummels has given his backing to "world-class" Germany team-mate Mesut Ozil and doubts he will be dropped for Arsenal's Champions League clash with Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
Ozil has not scored in two months and has come in for criticism for some of his recent performances.
Even Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admitted he is short on confidence after the 2-0 win over Hull on Saturday.
That has led to suggestions that Ozil could be dropped for the last-16 first-leg meeting with Bayern at the Allianz Arena.
But Hummels said: "It's a surprise to hear that Mesut is doubtful to play because to me he's a world-class player. That's the first time I hear that. I don't think so. I think he will be on the pitch from the first minute. He is a class player.
"Of course we have to make him play not good tomorrow because that would be bad for the result. Every offensive player has his good and bad moments.
"You can't just project it on one player. You can't say that any one offensive player always delivers in every big game."
Arsenal's form as a team has dipped over the last few weeks, with the win against Hull preceded by back-to-back defeats to Watford and Chelsea.
Hummels still expects a tough test and hopes Bayern can establish an advantage in Germany.
"We play at home so we want to put pressure on them from the first minute. It's something we want to do," he said.
"If they came in October when they were in a very good mood it would have been the same. We want to be the better team, to show them it's tough to play here from the first minute.
"It's hard to make this happen against the good teams but it's something that we are capable of."
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