Arsenal midfielder, Mesut Ozil has announced that he will be quitting the German national team with immediate effect and going into International retirement.
The World Cup winner has been in the midst of a huge scandal after he took a photo with Turkey’s president, Recep Erdogan which sparked controversy.
Ozil was subsequently the victim of abuse and ire especially after Germany crashed out of the World which culminated in an altercation with some German fans.
The midfielder has now announced that he will no longer play for Germany. He cited the “treatment he received from the DFB.” as his reason for retiring.
Earlier today, Mesut Ozil had released a statement explaining the situation with Erdogan stating that it was not a political move, rather a gesture of respect for the President of his country of birth.
Ozil’s international retirement has sent shockwaves round the world of football, but it was hinted after his father claimed that in his shoes he probably wouldn’t play for Germany again.
In Ozil’s statement announcing his international retirement, he also hit out at DFB president Reinhard Grindel whom he said made him a scapegoat. He said: “I will no longer stand for being a scapegoat for his incompetence and inability to do his job properly.”
Mesut Ozil’s statement added that the treatment he has gotten from the media, politicians and the DFB had led to this decision. He said; “I now feel unwanted and think that what I have achieved since my international debut in 2009 has been forgotten.”
III / III pic.twitter.com/c8aTzYOhWU
— Mesut Özil (@MesutOzil1088) July 22, 2018
Ozil also accused politician Bernd Holzhauer of calling him a “goat-f***er” and Chief of German Theatre Werner Steer of wishing for him to “p*** back to Anatolia.”
The World Cup winner played 92 times for his Germany scoring 23 goals and winning the World cup in the process in 2014.