Mesut Özil (German pronunciation: [ˈmeːzut ˈøːzil], Turkish: [me̞ˈsut ˈø̞zil]; born 15 October 1988) is a German footballer who plays for English club Arsenal and the German national team. Özil has been a youth national team member since 2006, and a member of the German national team since 2009. He gained international attention during the 2010 FIFA World Cup and was nominated for the Golden Ball Award, which is awarded to the tournament's best player. Özil started his senior career at hometown club Schalke in the Bundesliga in 2006, transferred to Werder Bremen in 2008 and was signed by Real Madrid in August 2010 following his break-out performance at the FIFA World Cup with Germany. On transfer deadline day of summer 2013, he moved to Arsenal for a club-record fee of £42.5 million.[3][4][5][6] The transfer makes him the most expensive German football player of all time.
Özil is acclaimed for his finesse and improvisation as an attacking midfielder. His style and ability for providing assists for his team-mates has been compared by former manager José Mourinho to that of Real Madrid legend Zinedine Zidane.[7] In 2011, Özil ranked first in assists in major European and domestic competitions with 25. In 2012, he ranked first in assists in La Liga with 17.[8][9] He was also one of the top assist providers in the 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2012 with three in both tournaments.
Contents [hide]
1 Club career
1.1 Gelsenkirchen and Rot-Weiss Essen
1.2 Schalke 04
1.3 Werder Bremen
1.4 Real Madrid
1.4.1 2010–11 season
1.4.2 2011–12 season
1.4.3 2012–13 season
1.5 Arsenal
1.5.1 2013–14 season
1.5.2 2014–15 season
2 International career
2.1 2010 FIFA World Cup
2.2 UEFA Euro 2012
2.3 2014 FIFA World Cup
3 Style of play
4 Outside football
4.1 Personal life
4.1.1 Charity
4.2 Media and sponsorship
5 Career statistics
5.1 Club
5.2 International goals
6 Honours
6.1 Club
6.2 International
6.3 Individual
7 References
8 External links
§Club career
§Gelsenkirchen and Rot-Weiss Essen
Özil began his youth career playing for various clubs in Gelsenkirchen and then played five years for Rot-Weiss Essen.
§Schalke 04
In 2005, Özil moved to the youth department of Schalke 04. He was deployed a midfielder and wore 17 as his squad number, after starting as a playmaker and central attacking midfielder in the place of the suspended Lincoln in Ligapokal matches against Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich.[10] On making the first team at Schalke, he was described as "the next big thing," but after declining an offer from Schalke 04, claiming that a yearly salary of € 1.5 million would not be enough. he eventually fell out with club management and moved on to Werder Bremen in January 2008.[11] This led to Mirko Slomka, the then-Schalke 04 manager, claiming that Özil would not play another match for Schalke 04.[12]
§Werder Bremen
Özil with Werder Bremen in April 2010.
On 31 January 2008, Özil moved to Werder Bremen for a reported fee of €5 million, signing a contract with the German club until 30 June 2011. Other than Werder Bremen, Hannover 96 and VfB Stuttgart were reportedly interested as well in binding Özil to their respective clubs, however did not want to pay such a high transfer fee.[13] After transferring to Werder Bremen, Özil got the jersey number 11.
Fresh off his fallout at Schalke 04, he stepped into the shoes of Brazilian playmaker Diego to help lead the north German club to the 2009 DFB-Pokal with the winning goal in a 1–0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in Berlin.[14] He also excelled in Europe where he led Werder Bremen to the final of the last ever UEFA Cup, losing out to Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine.[15]
On 26 April 2008 (30th match day) Özil scored the 2–1 in the 33 against Karlsruher SC, this being his very first Bundesliga goal. He played in twelve games of the second half of the season, six times playing in the starting formation, becoming second with Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga at the end of the 2007–08 season.
In the 2009–10 season, Özil became the key playmaker of Werder Bremen. On 1 May 2010 (33rd match day), Özil played his 100th Bundesliga game, scoring the 1–0 lead in a 2–0 win against his former club Schalke 04. Özil went on and led Werder Bremen to become third in the league and again to the DFB-Pokal final, however this time it was lost against Bayern Munich by 0–4. Although Bremen failed to get going in their 2008–09 Bundesliga season, eventually finishing a disappointing 10th, Özil managed to make a significant impact in most games and came away with a respectable three goals and 15 assists that highlighted his attacking credentials.[15] In his second season, Bremen finished a respectable third, with Özil contributing 9 goals and 17 assists in 31 league fixture appearances. During the 2009–10 season, Özil was also declared as the "best player of the first half of the season".[16]
In total, Özil played 108 games for Werder Bremen in all competitions, scoring 16 goals and giving 55 assists.
§Real Madrid
§2010–11 season
Özil playing for Real Madrid in 2010.
Due to his performances in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Özil ensured his place among Europe's top young talents. He was sought by teams like Barcelona, Arsenal, and Real Madrid. English striker Wayne Rooney was one of the many admirers Özil had garnered with his performances in the World Cup, and had even asked Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson to sign the German playmaker.[17] There were reports claiming that a deal was struck for a transfer to Barça. Werder Bremen denied the reports and on 17 August 2010, the team announced that they had reached an agreement with Real Madrid for Özil's transfer.[18] The transfer fee is believed to have been in the region of €15 million.[19] Upon signing, Özil said, "When the offer came in to join Real Madrid, there is no decision to make. Let's be honest – you don't refuse this club. I was in no rush to leave Werder Bremen, but this is one club you say yes to. They are an institution, a club with a fantastic history, stadium and squad full of world-class players. The prospect of performing at the Bernabeu is so awesome you jump straight in."[20] Özil made his debut on 22 August in a friendly match against Hércules, which Real Madrid won 3–1.[21] His jersey numbers were changed often before the season started. He was given the number 26 in the pre-season and 19 for his debut. But following the transfer of Rafael van der Vaart to Tottenham Hotspur, he was given the vacant 23.
Özil was brought in to back up teammate Kaká, but due to his surgery, Özil obtained a starting role. He then made his La Liga debut for Real Madrid as a substitute for Ángel Di María in the 62nd minute against Mallorca, which Real Madrid drew 0–0.[22]
Özil taking on Daniele Bonera of Milan during the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League.
He made his season debut in the Champions League on 15 September. He got his first assist with Real Madrid in the 74th minute against Ajax after he crossed for a Gonzalo Higuaín goal.[23]
He walked off the pitch as a second half substitute to standing ovations in his first two games as a starter at the Santiago Bernabéu. His first goal came in a league match against Deportivo La Coruña on 3 October 2010, in a 6–1 victory.[24] Özil's first Champions League goal with Real came in the 14th minute against Milan on 19 October 2010.[25] On 22 December, he made his debut in the Copa del Rey, scoring once in an 8–0 victory over Levante.[26]
He finished the season with 25 assists, the highest for any player in any major European competition that season. Özil's performances for Real Madrid during his first season were praised by media, fans and players.[27][28]
