“Mesut was also exploited” Özil’s angry resignation from the DFB still disappoints his father to this day
November 8th, 2023, 6:30 a.m
It has been more than five years since Mesut Özil’s abrupt resignation from the national soccer team. His father Mustafa is still unhappy about the end to this day. He sees his son’s environment as complicit and wants reconciliation – with job prospects.
Mesut Özil’s father is still struggling with his son’s inglorious exit from the DFB and is hoping for a reconciliation with the association. “My great wish would be for him to work for the DFB one day, for example, in team management or in some advisory role such as foreigner integration,” Mustafa Özil told “Sport Bild”. His son still stands for “successful integration”.
Father Mustafa continues to be critical of Özil’s resignation from the national team in 2018. “You can draw a line in the sand, but always with grace – and you leave yourself a crack in the door. I would have invited all reporters to a live press conference and ended it properly – and not on Twitter. What’s the point of that?” he said.
Before the 2018 World Cup, Mesut Özil caused a stir with a sharply criticized photo alongside President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who later became the 35-year-old’s best man. After the disappointing preliminary round exit and massive hostility, the 2014 world champion resigned from the DFB team following the tournament. He denounced disrespect and racism at the DFB.
Mustafa Özil, who managed his son himself until 2013, is still annoyed by the circumstances to this day. “Mesut was influenced by his environment. That wasn’t good for him. You can’t say that Germany is xenophobic, that the country in which he was born wouldn’t have given him a chance. Such statements don’t come from him, that’s not who he is “Honestly: I have the feeling that Mesut was also taken advantage of,” he said.
The example of İlkay Gündoğan shows how things could have worked out with better advice, added Mustafa Özil. “He was in the photo with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2018. The criticism was great. And today he is captain of the German national team. Because he has a good environment around him and was given good advice.”
Mesut Özil caused a stir several times with his political statements. In December 2019, the then Arsenal FC professional made critical comments on social media about the oppression of the Uyghurs in China, most recently attracting attention with pro-Palestinian internet posts. “But you shouldn’t read too much into it. Nevertheless, as a father, I would like him to simply leave out social media messages about his origins, religion and politics. He is an athlete,” said Mustafa Özil.
Özil was most recently under contract with Basaksehir Istanbul. He ended his active career with immediate effect last March.
2023-11-08 05:30:00
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