Report: Ozil to miss Liverpool trip with illness

Mesut Ozil clearly hasn't been taking his vitamins.

After missing January matches against Crystal Palace and Bournemouth due to illness, the German World Cup-winner is reportedly set for a second spell away from first-team duties for Arsenal with a case of the flu.

Related: Ozil misses Bournemouth trip with illness

It would appear that a two-week footballing hiatus wasn't enough for the 28-year-old playmaker, with the Evening Standard's James Benge among several sources reporting that Ozil will miss Saturday's pivotal top-four clash at Liverpool.

After being sent home from training Wednesday at Arsenal's Colney facilities, hopes were that Ozil would be fit for the Merseyside trip, though now it looks like either Alex Iwobi or the in-form Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will deputise for the Gelsenkirchen-born lighting rod for derision.

Should Ozil miss the Premier League tilt between the fourth- and fifth-place sides, he will likely be fit for the midweek return leg of the Champions League last-16 against Bayern Munich, with Arsenal facing a near-insurmountable task of overcoming a four-goal deficit. Ozil's last appearance for Arsenal was against the Bavarian giant, and, needless to say, his display was not the most inspiring effort the Schalke academy product has put forth since making the north London switch from Real Madrid in 2013.

After a red-hot start to the campaign, Ozil has not scored since a Dec. 10 victory over Stoke City, and has just two assists in nine matches after leading the league with 18 helpers last season.