Arsenal have released a statement that Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac will not make the trip up to Newcastle due to security threats.
Charles Watts, who is an Arsenal correspondent for Goal, has tweeted the statement in its entirety.
Statement just released by Arsenal on Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac – who will not be available against Newcastle. pic.twitter.com/E8H1KclSTw
— Charles Watts (@charles_watts) August 9, 2019
We don’t know what the new security threats are but they may stem from an incident in July in which the two were attacked by knife-wielding assailants. That incident can be seen below.
An incident took place in London today where Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil was the victim of an attempted car-jacking.
Footage appears to show Sead Kolasinac fighting off attackers.
Arsenal comment: ”We have been in contact with both players and they are fine.”pic.twitter.com/38Y2l4FJro
— Goal (@goal) July 25, 2019
Of course this is terrible news and we hope both players and their families are kept safe. We also hope that whoever is posing the security risk is apprehended and brought to justice.
This article was originally posted here