Wenger: 'Özil needs support - not controversy'
Arsene Wenger says the world didn't see 'the real Özil' at the World Cup - and there's a good reason why.
| Mesut Özil. |
The German international came under fire before the tournament after he and Ilkay Gündogan were pictured with controversial Turkish president Recept Tayyip Erdogan. And according to the now former Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger, it was evident on the pitch that Özil had a hard time coping with the controversy that the picture caused.
"I know Ozil well, he’s a fantastic, exceptional football player, but he and Gündogan suffered from what happened before the World Cup, because they have been vindicated in Germany," Wenger told beIN SPORTS and added:
"Özil is a guy who needs support, he doesn’t need controversy. When I watched him play, I could feel that there were situations in the game where he could have moved forward, progressed more vertically. He played with security."
"I was thinking 'come on, that is not the real Özil I know'. He did play all right, but I think he didn’t play with complete freedom. I think he played a little bit with the handbrake at this World Cup."
After the World Cup, Mesut Özil's father has even said that he would quit the national team if he were in his son's shoes.
