Mesut Ozil

UNAI Emery is ready to pave the way for Mesut Ozil to make a return to Premier League action on Saturday when Wolverhampton Wanderers visit the Emirates Stadium.

Emery brought Ozil in from the cold on Wednesday night when he handed the German playmaker a rare start against Liverpool in the League Cup.

Ozil repaid the Arsenal head coach by playing an instrumental part in at least two of the goals as the Gunners battled out a 10-goal thriller at Anfield, drawing 5-5 before eventually losing 5-4 in a penalty shootout.

Ozil got a good hour under his belt before being substituted for Matteo Guendouzi in the 65th minute, and Emery now says that he “will feature” in the team again at the weekend.

“I think he played very well. You’ve seen he is a skilful player in the team and he was very positive every time,” said Emery. “We have another match on Saturday and we will look at the possibility to use him again alongside other players, and this is the way sometimes.”

Reflecting on the decision to haul Ozil off with the game still hanging in the balance, Emery added: “We spoke before the match, and we made the decision to take him off because he hasn’t played for a little while and we want to keep his fitness.

“He was very tired. I think in that moment it is good to make that decision to rest him.”

After making only his third appearance of the season against Liverpool, Ozil clearly believes he did enough to earn a place on Saturday’s team-sheet.

The World Cup winner posted on social media: “Crazy and incredible match. Losing on penalties is always tough, but definitely some positive things to take away from Anfield. Thanks for the away support! Focus on Wolverhampton now.”

Meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether or not Gunners captain Granit Xhaka will feature against Wolves following the spat with his own fans on Sunday during the 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace.

The Switzerland international was left out of the squad against Liverpool, although Emery insisted that was always going to be the case.

Quizzed on whether the midfielder would be back in the team, Emery said: “Xhaka? I cannot say how we are going to play on Saturday. We have to take it step by step.”

The Spaniard also refused to confirm if Xhaka had been fined after Sunday’s incident, add­ing: “We are in the first step after his mistake. Now is for him to recover as a person.”