Mesut Ozil is the second highest paid player in the country who splits opinion like no other.

                                                                                             Ozil's stance divided opinion, whether it was perceived as a dignified and belated act of defiance in the face of unacceptable bigotry or an act of self-pity by an under-performing player.Ozil is a third-generation immigrant born in Gelsenkirchen, the son of a Ruhr Valley coalminer who resisted the advances of Turkey as a teenager and pledged his footballing life to the country of his birth, winning 92 caps and the World Cup.

He is also a practising Muslim who spends much of his free time in Istanbul, the city which is home to his girlfriend Amine Gulse — a model and actress who was born in Sweden of Turkish descent and is a former Miss Turkey.

'I am German when we win but I am an immigrant when we lose,' said Ozil as his patience finally snapped.

He explained how the row with a fan as he left the pitch in Kazan following the defeat against South Korea which sealed Germany's World Cup exit had been racially motivated, as was much of a tirade of online abuse and hate mail. Ozil signed the biggest contract ever granted to an Arsenal player at £350,000 a week until 2021. Only Alexis Sanchez at Manchester United earns more in the Premier League.

Of all the challenges facing new boss Unai Emery — stepping into a role occupied by Wenger for 22 years — this is the big one.

Can he crack the Ozil enigma? Can he do what Wenger could not? Can he build a team to maximise the talents of this playmaker? Can he clear Ozil's mind and motivate him?

If he can, Arsenal might be the beneficiaries from this breakdown in relations between the German and the DFB.