Saturday 28 July 2018 17:39, UK
Unai Emery has suggested Mesut Ozil could be Arsenal's regular captain after he was handed the armband for a 5-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain on Saturday.
Ozil has endured a difficult summer after Germany exited the World Cup at the group stage and he then retired from international duty, accusing some German FA officials of racism.
However, Emery showed his support for the 29-year-old by naming him captain in his first pre-season appearance in the International Champions Cup clash in Singapore.
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"We are working together and giving the responsibility to the players," said Emery.
"I think he can take the responsibility, but let's not forget [Laurent] Koscielny who is recovering with us. Then we've got Petr Cech, who captained us in a friendly match.
"Aaron Ramsey also captained us in a friendly and I am maybe thinking another one or two players can take responsibility for every player in the team."
Emery plans to select five captains, saying: "We are nearly finished, but like I am telling you, one is Koscielny but he's injured.
"I am thinking about Petr, Aaron and Mesut. Then I need to find one or two more."
Ozil netted the opening goal in the 5-1 win, finishing from close range in the 13th minute after a pass across goal from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
He played in a more advanced role with Aubameyang in the first half, and Emery was asked afterwards after Ozil's best position.
"We want to give him and our players the position they feel most comfortable in on the pitch," he said.
"He started today at No 10 with Matteo [Guendouzi] and Mohamed [Elneny] behind him. The first one would go up and then find him between the lines, or sometimes [Henrikh] Mkhitaryan. When we do have the ball, we can press with the striker and a No 10 almost like a 4-4-2 in a press.
"It depends because Mesut can play on the right and go inside, driving in to open up space for the right-back. We want to find a space for him and the other players where they can use their qualities through good positioning."
