‘Unbelievably shocking’: Paul Merson hits out at recent Arsenal decision

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Arsenal legend Paul Merson has criticised the Gunners for their handling of the Gunnersaurus situation, also claiming that Mesut Ozil has made the club look “absolutely stupid”.

The North Londoners caused controversy earlier this week after effectively making their long-serving mascot redundant in their latest round of cost-cutting measures.

An absence of fans at games has impacted revenue on matchdays and Jerry Quy, who plays Gunnersaurus, joins 55 other redundancies at the Emirates Stadium.

Ozil, who hasn’t played a game for the Gunners since March, made the gesture of covering Quy’s wages so he can continue his role.

The German said in a post on social media: “I was so sad that Jerry Quy aka our famous & loyal mascot @Gunnersaurus and integral part of our club was being made redundant after 27 years.

“As such, I’m offering to reimburse @Arsenal with the full salary of our big green guy as long as I will be an Arsenal player. So Jerry can continue his job that he loves so much.”

Arsenal responded to Ozil’s offer by insisting that the much-loved mascot will return when fans are allowed back at matches.

“Ozil has made Arsenal look absolutely stupid by offering to pay for Gunnersaurus to keep his job,” Merson wrote in the Daily Star.

“But binning their mascot just shows how selfish and out of touch the people who run the club are these days.

“You cannot believe how angry I am about this. It is unbelievably shocking at the highest level.

“Arsenal used to ooze class. I don’t think the owners even know what that word means any more.

“Whoever made the decision to get rid of the mascot needs to take a long hard look at themselves.”

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Even though Arsenal have pledged to bring Gunnersaurus back when fans are allowed back at games, their decision to lay Quy off hasn’t gone down well with a lot of people.

Admittedly, the Gunners aren’t the only club having to make tough financial decisions in the current climate.

But when fans hear about employees on modest wages being made redundant by clubs while others continue to earn five or six figures a week, it does leave a bitter taste in the mouth.