Arsene Wenger once said that if you love watching football, you love watching Mesut Ozil play. And he was right. The beautifully-gifted midfielder was a joy to watch when he was in the mood to play, but we won’t see him play any more. The former Arsenal and Real Madrid star has announced his retirement from professional football at 34.Mesut Ozil at Real Madrid, one of the best players you’ll ever see in their prime.Happy retirement you legend. pic.twitter.com/8gFTZJWU6Z— Janty (@CFC_Janty) March 22, 2023 Ozil came through the youth team of his local club Schalke before moving to Werder, where he won the German Cup and helped the team reach the final of the 2009 UEFA Cup.A move to Real Madrid followed, where Ozil won the league in 2012 as well as the Copa del Rey twice. However, he fell out of favour following the ascent of Cristiano Ronaldo to one of the two best players in the world and in 2013 he moved to Arsenal, where he spent the next eight years. Ozil’s time at Arsenal was mixed, with moments of brilliance but also far too many disputes, bad games are periods of being completely out of the team.#YaGunnersYa @Arsenal ❤️ pic.twitter.com/dnJi2MJoG1— Mesut Özil (@M10) March 22, 2023 He spent the last few years in Turkey, first with Fenerbahce and then Istanbul Basaksehir. Ozil was part of the Germany team that won the 2014 World Cup. He confirmed his retirement in a Twitter post on Wednesday morning.”Hello everyone.After thoughtful consideration, I’m announcing my immediate retirement from professional football.I’ve had the privilege to be a professional football player for almost 17 years now and I feel incredibly thankful for the opportunity. But in recent weeks and months, having also suffered some injuries, it’s become more and more clear that it’s time to leave the big stage of football.It has been an amazing journey filled with unforgettable moments and emotions. I want to thank my clubs – Schalke 04, Werder Bremen, Real Madrid, Arsenal FC, Fenerbahce, Basaksehir and the coaches who have supported me, plus team-mates who have become friends.Special thanks must go to my family members and my closest friends. They have been a part of my journey from day one and have given me so much love and support, through the good times and the bad.Thank you to all my fans who have shown me so much love no matter the circumstances and no matter which club I was representing.Now I’m looking forward to everything that is in front of me with my beautiful wife, Amine, and my two beautiful daughters, Eda and Ela – but you can be sure you will hear from me from time to time on my social media channels.See you soon, Mesut.”Arsène Wenger on Mesut Özil in 2015: “If you love to watch football, you love to watch Özil.”Simply unplayable on his day. Maestro. (📽️ @ChampionsLeague)pic.twitter.com/FEpcXzTkag— Get German Football News (@GGFN_) March 22, 2023 Ozil retires having made 598 appearances across his club career, 159 for Madrid and 254 for Arsenal. He scored 98 goals in his career, of which 44 came for Arsenal and 27 for Real Madrid. In total, he registered 133 assists, 55 coming for Arsenal and 47 for Madrid.
