Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown has once again taken aim at the Gunners star playmaker Mesut Ozil.

The 30-year-old made a return from a back injury on Thursday night to feature against Qarabag FK in the Europa League. Arsenal registered a 1-0 victory over the Azerbaijani side and Ozil provided the assist for his sides only goal.

Keown admitted that he was impressed by Ozil’s performance in patches however, he questioned Ozil’s desire to work hard regularly.

The former England international also expressed his relief that club captain Laurent Koscielny returned from an ankle injury.

“It’s a chance for Ozil, to see how he is after that back injury,” Keown told BTSport.

“He needs to show he wants to work hard out of possession as well as the quality in possession, to get back into this team, and he’s shown that.

“Emery has shown it doesn’t matter about the reputation, but Ozil is exciting with his passes, he can switch the play, it’s all there for him, for me its just if he wants it enough.

“It’s a chance for Ozil, to see how he is after that back injury.

“He needs to show he wants to work hard out of possession as well as the quality in possession, to get back into this team, and he’s shown that.

“Emery has shown it doesn’t matter about the reputation, but Ozil is exciting with his passes, he can switch the play, it’s all there for him, for me its just if he wants it enough.”

Ozil is expected to start on the bench when Arsenal take on relegation battlers Southampton this weekend. The Gunners have maintained their unbeaten run of form during Ozil’s absence.

Arsenal also booked their place in the next round of the Europa League.

Ozil has been linked with a move to rivals Manchester United over the last month. The 30-year-old has previously played under Man United boss Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid.

However, Ozil only recently put pen-to-paper on a mega-money three-year contract with the north London based club.