Arsenal cannot afford to accommodate Mesut Ozil if the playmaker is simply "going through the motions", according to former Gunners defender Martin Keown.
Arsene Wenger's side fell to a sloppy 1-0 defeat away at Stoke on Saturday evening thanks to a goal from Spaniard Jese on his Premier League debut.
The Potters looked to get at Arsenal's back three, including two left-backs, from the off but had to wait until the second half for some sloppy defending from Nacho Monreal to hand them the breakthrough as Jese scored scoon after the restart.
Arsene Wenger’s side spurned chance after chance in front of goal, while Jack Butland stood firm to deny any efforts which found the target.
While there were a number of players to point the finger at for the Gunners - who spurned the chance to win their first two league games of the season for the first time since 2009 - Keown took aim at Ozil.
The German international, who was the target of heavy criticism when things went wrong last season and has been at the centre of a contract debate alongside Alexis Sanchez for months now, was off-colour at the Bet365 Stadium and failed to unlock the Stoke defence.
Speaking on BT Sport after the game, Keown said: "Your [Dennis] Bergkamps, [Thierry] Henrys and [Patrick] Vieiras they would give you everything in the game, both sides of the game, they would put their foot in, and they could play.
"Arsenal can’t afford to carry someone like Ozil.
"Today, he wants to have a good look at himself because he’s not kidding us watching the game, it’s not real.
"It felt like he was going through the motions today a lot of the time and I think in the goal they concede shows that.
"If he has a quick reaction he can get back into position and help Xhaka but he doesn’t react quick enough."
The Gunners will need to sort things out at the back quickly before they visit Anfield to face a Liverpool side with a penchant for taking advantage of a weak defence.
