Ozil: Third place will mean Arsenal have achieved target

Mesut Ozil says Arsenal will have achieved their pre-season target if they finish third in the Premier League, although he acknowledges they could have won the title this season.

Arsenal sit fourth in the table with three games remaining, level on points with third-placed Manchester City, and Ozil is adamant their campaign should not be classified a failure if they are able to leapfrog City before the end of the season.

“If we finish third in the table and directly qualify for the Champions League, at least we will have met our minimum goal,” the Germany international told SID.

“But we could have won the league title this season. We dropped too many points against the smaller teams.”

Arsenal sit 12 points behind leaders Leicester City and Ozil feels Claudio Ranieri’s men deserve the title following their fine season.

He added: “I definitely would not have believed it had someone told me before the start of the season that Leicester would win the title – nobody would have believed it.

“Hats off to Leicester. They always give 100 per cent and deserve to be top of the table.”