Friday’s Lacazette excitement has been replaced with Sunday’s Ox disappointment, as there are reports coming out today that the midfielder has snubbed his latest contract offer because he wants more game time centrally, something Liverpool can supposedly offer.

This is one of the most ‘will he/won’t he’ situations I have ever seen at Arsenal I have to say. Usually you get an inkling of a player leaning a certain way and if you take the Alexis situation it certainly feels a little more cut and dry that the Chilean is leaving this summer. But with the Ox I have never seen so many conflicting reports. There are not many people you can trust online, but there are a few who I think are close to a couple of people at Arsenal and they have said their information is that the Ox is going to stay. But the news from the papers – and despite the gutter trash of them sometimes, usually there is no smoke without fire – it appears more likely that he’ll leave.

So where we’re at right now is that the conflicting reports make this one of the most confusing situations of the summer. I genuinely believe that. Özil isn’t as confusing because it looks like there aren’t many offers for him. Alexis seems off. Gibbs, Debuchy and Jenkinson are also fairly obvious, whilst Lucas Perez and Ospina have made their intentions quite obvious. But you just don’t know with the Ox.

I know he’s had his injury problems, but I’d be gutted if he left, because I think he’s a superb talent who will get game time next season. I think he’ll play as a right wing back more regularly or as a midfielder occasionally but I kind of understand if he wanted to join Liverpool. But if he has rejected Arsenal, I wouldn’t be surprised if other clubs got interested very quickly, like United or Chelski. Both Mourinho and Chelsea have expressed an interest in the past (remember when we were getting Cech and Maureen suggested a swap deal?) and if they can get an exciting, young, England international for £25million when he’s probably worth about £10million more than that in today’s market, then there’ll be plenty sniffing around.

We have too many other players that we need to offload this summer and if the Ox is one of the first out of the door, that will be very much down to the poor management by Arsenal, because if they’d have sorted something out six months ago we probably wouldn’t be worrying too much about this.

I just hope that those who have expressed such an assertive view that he’s staying have some genuine intel on him. I really do.

That’s it from me today. Yesterday I went to a family BBQ and drunk far too much rum so I need to find a way of exorcising the demons and toxins in my body. 

I think I’ll start with eggs.

Laters.