Mesut Ozil

Mesut Ozil was born in Gelsenkirchen in Germany in 1988. He is a third generation Turkish-German and currently resides in England where he plays professional football for Arsenal.

The midfielder has played in three of Europe's major leagues after spells in Germany, Spain, and now England.

Ozil had periods at various youth teams before settling at Schalke in 2005. He made his full debut at the German club one year later. Although he was regarded as a crucial player for the future, they were happy to sell him on to Werder Bremen in January 2008 after he fell out with management.

The playmaker was able to shine for the River Islanders, in particular in the UEFA Cup, where they made it all the way through to the final. After a fine run, Ozil and his teammates were beaten by Shakhtar Donetsk in Ukraine and had to settle for second place.

During the 2010 World Cup, he started for Germany in all of their group games and also starred in the knockout rounds. Against Ghana in their second game of the tournament, the Bremen player found the back of the net during his side's win. After the tournament in South Africa, FIFA included him in the nominations for the Golden Ball. He also caught the eye of several big European clubs, including Real Madrid, who signed the player for €15million.

Ozil was able to make an immediate impact with the Spanish giants. In 2011 he recorded 25 assists, the most of any player in major European and domestic competitions. A year later he topped the charts for the most assists in the Spanish top flight, with 17 to his name.

In his second full season at the Bernabeu, he won La Liga under the guidance of Jose Mourinho. They became the first team in history to reach over 100 points in the Primera Division.

During his four-year spell in Spain, he also lifted the Copa del Ray and Supercopa de Espana. From an individual point of view, he was on the shortlist for the FIFA Ballon d'Or award, which is handed to the world player of the year.

Ozil became the most expensive German player in history when Arsenal captured him on the final day of the summer transfer window in 2013 for £42.5 million. A lot of his Real Madrid teammates were very disappointed to see him go, including Cristiano Ronaldo, who heavily praised the new Gunners man for being an intelligent footballer.

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