Mesut Özil, the Premier League’s player with Most Assists in 2015-16, has announced his retirement from football on his official Instagram page.
Ozil’s final game came on February 2, when he was substituted at halftime during Istanbul Basaksehir’s 1-0 defeat at Kayserispor in the Turkish Super Lig.
The attacking midfielder was born in Gelsenkirchen and began his football career with Schalke 04 in 2005 before moving to another German club, Werder Bremen, on January 31, 2008.
On January 31, 2008, he joined Real Madrid after helping the North German club win the 2009 DFB-Pokal with the winning goal in a 1-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in Berlin.
Mesut Özil had a spot on Joachim Loew’s list for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, in which he started in all of the team’s matches after remarkably scoring a left-footed half-volley from the edge of the penalty area against Ghana in the final group game, ensuring Germany progressed to the second round as group winners.
Özil’s performance with the German national team at the 2010 FIFA World Cup landed him a contract with Real Madrid on August 17, 2010, for a reported €15 million transfer fee. He was brought in to back up teammate Kaká, but due to the latter’s surgery, Özil obtained a starting role.
He joined Arsenal in September 2013 for a then-club record fee of £42.4 million, winning back-to-back FA Cups in his first two seasons before being named player of the season in his third and winning the cup again in 2017.
In January 2018, he became the club’s highest-paid player, signing a three-and-a-half-year deal worth around £350,000 per week before tax, but he fell out of favour under new Arsenal manager Unai Emery.
He became the club’s highest-paid player in January 2018, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract worth around £350,000 per week before tax, but he was dropped by new Arsenal manager Unai Emery.
Özil stated on Instagram that it was becoming “more and more clear that it’s time to leave the big stage of football,” citing injuries as a factor in his decision.
Ozil’s statement read: “After thoughtful consideration, I’m announcing my immediate retirement from professional football. I’ve had the privilege of being 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.”
