Arsenal supporters should not shun Mesut Ozil after German inspires at Everton... he will be sorely missed if Manchester United move materialises

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Ignore the noise. The message, punched into social media before his team headed to Merseyside, could not have been more stark.

Mesut Ozil knew his future had been the subject of intense debate all week so, in an attempt to defuse the situation, he took to Twitter and urged all the Arsenal's fans among his 18million followers to concentrate on the important task that lie ahead of them.

His intentions were understandable. This exactly the type of occasion in which Arsenal have fallen down before and, having lost to Watford eight days ago, the last thing he and his team-mates needed was to concede further ground in the Premier League. 

Mesut Ozil celebrates his first goal of the season after giving Arsenal the lead over Everton

The German international made a habit of ghosting past the Everton midfielders

The 29-year-old Ozil scores a rare header to complete a successful day for the Gunners

That's the thing with best intentions, though - they don't always work out as you want them to and all Ozil did when tapping out that message was bring guarantee that his performance would be held up to the most intense scrutiny.

The past week, of course, has seen stories emerge about Ozil's desire to play for Jose Mourinho again as he aims to run his contract down and join Manchester United for the start of next season.

It has been risible that Arsenal have allowed themselves to get in such a position where their most lucrative assets, Ozil and Alexis Sanchez, who hold the cards. How much money must you have if you can give £100million-worth of talent away? 

OZIL ENJOYS A BUSY AFTERNOON 

The German pulls the strings at Goodison Park as he dominates the midfield

Ozil also had a hand in his goal as he begins the move before finishing it off with a header - for more key match facts visit Sportsmail's exclusive Match Zone 

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Ozil was playing in a game of his own with boss Arsene Wenger labelling him 'exceptional'

He followed up his goal with an assist for Alexandre Lacazette's second-half goal

Some will argue that they are better off without him. He is not universally popular in the dressing room, his attitude, on occasions, has been open to question and the perception is that he is more of a headache than it is worth.

So here's the question: can Arsenal be better off without him? On the evidence of what we saw at Goodison Park, you have to answer with a resounding 'no'. At times, Ozil played a different game to those around him.

Everton, it must be pointed out, are not the Everton they used to be. Once their energy ran out and their heads dropped, Arsenal had the luxury of playing a training game and trampled all over their hosts, emptying the stadium with each second-half goal.

Ozil was off the pitch when the fury rained down on Ronald Koeman at the final whistle, his work long since done, but as he rested in the dugout, the Germany international could feel content with what he had contributed.   

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Yes, there were moments in the first half when the game threatened to pass him but, when the mood took Ozil, he looked capable of taking Everton apart on his own, the weight of his passing and the intelligence of his movement a joy to behold.

With Everton in such a wretched state, the platform was there for him to run amok and - to an extent - he did, scoring their second goal with a glancing header, which put them in front for the first time, and then teeing up the third for Alexander Lacazette.

'He was superb,' said Arsene Wenger. 'He was agile, quick, intelligent; he was always there to serve his team. When he is at that level, he is an exceptional football player.'

Wenger went on to argue that he now has strength in depth and he has quality in every area, pointing out that he made 10 changes to the team that won in Belgrade on Thursday. That may be true but there is only one Mesut Ozil.

Should the noise prove accurate and he does end up leaving, Arsenal will be all the poorer without him.

Arsenal team-mates appear unfazed by transfer saga developing around Ozil as they celebrate 

Ozil celebrates a great day at the office and is firmly back in Arsenal favour