Report: Arsenal hopeful January arrivals will convince Ozil to stay

Arsenal officials are optimistic that the arrival of winter reinforcements will convince Mesut Ozil to remain in north London beyond this season.

Ozil and Alexis Sanchez have been under the spotlight throughout the season, as the two entered the campaign without contracts beyond this summer. The latter will reportedly join rival Manchester United in a deal that could send Henrikh Mkhitaryan from Old Trafford to the Emirates Stadium.

Although Arsenal has seemingly come to terms with Sanchez's departure, club officials are hopeful that the arrivals of Mkhitaryan and Borussia Dortmund forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will persuade Ozil to commit his long-term future to the club, according to James Olley and Simon Johnson of the Evening Standard.

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Mkhitaryan's arrival is expected to coincide with confirmation of Sanchez's transfer to United on Tuesday, as the pair work on the final details of their respective deals.

Arsene Wenger has admitted that Mkhitaryan is expected to join Arsenal this month, and discussed Monday how the 28-year-old would fare alongside Ozil.

"Just play the good players! They can always play together," the Arsenal manager said of Wednesday's League Cup semi-final encounter with Chelsea.

"Today, what have you on the pitch? They're all attacking players. (Alex) Iwobi, Ozil, (Jack) Wilshere, (Alexandre) Lacazette, (Granit) Xhaka. They're all offensive players, basically."

When pressed about a possible partnership between Aubameyang and Lacazette, Wenger responded: "We are not as far as that to think about that problem!"

Talks with Aubameyang have progressed to a point where contract terms have been agreed upon, while Arsenal officials are thought to have arrived in Germany on Sunday to negotiate a transfer fee with Borussia Dortmund. A successful bid could result in Arsenal paying a club-record fee in excess of £50 million, according to Simon Stone of BBC Sport.

Meanwhile, it appears that Ozil is edging towards putting pen to paper on a new long-term contract after former Arsenal forward Alan Smith revealed last week that a source confirmed that a deal that will keep him in north London is "close."