As per reports in Turkey, Mesut Ozil has interest from Saudi Arabia. I understand a Qatari club have also made an approach, but both offers are for him to leave AFC this summer — which he currently has no intention of doing. : Gunners

Don’t think of it in terms of ‘pay cut’, but in terms of total income.

If some other club offers him marginally less per week, but for three years, and with no income tax, that is hugely more money for him than sitting out his contract with us.

Those clubs have an incentive to sign him now, as opposed to next year, because signing a player that famous from a club as big as us — context aside — will be perceived as a massive coup for them; signing him as a free agent, somewhat less so.

I’d say the odds of Özil leaving, which had previously been effectively zero, are now decidedly non-zero.