Mesut Özil (, ; born 15 October 1988) is a German former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. Known for his ball control, technical skills, creativity, passing skills, and vision, he is widely regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation.
Born and raised in Gelsenkirchen, Özil began his senior club career playing for hometown club Schalke 04, before signing with Werder Bremen in 2008, aged 19. Özil established himself as one of Germany's most promising players at Werder Bremen, helping the club win the DFB-Pokal and reach the 2009 UEFA Cup final in his debut season. His performances earned him a move to Real Madrid in 2010. There, he won the 2010–11 Copa del Rey before helping the club win the 2011–12 La Liga title with a then-record 100 points. He was named in the UEFA Team of the Year in 2012 and 2013.
In 2013, Özil joined Arsenal for a fee of up to £42.5 million (€50 million), becoming the most expensive German player in history and Arsenal's record signing at the time. He made over 250 appearances for the club and helped end its nine-year trophy drought by winning the 2013–14 FA Cup, before adding two more FA Cups. In 2015–16, he recorded 19 assists in the Premier League, nearly matching the competition's single-season record, as Arsenal challenged for the league title. In 2021, Özil joined Fenerbahçe on a free transfer; after his contract with the club was terminated in 2022, he signed with İstanbul Başakşehir, before retiring in 2023.
A German international for over nine years, Özil holds the record for the most German national team Player of the Year awards (five). He made his senior debut for the Germany national team in 2009 at age 20, and appeared in five major tournaments. He was the top assist provider at the 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2012, where he helped Germany twice reach the semi-final. Özil helped Germany win the 2014 FIFA World Cup, but retired from international competition in 2018, alleging what he saw as discrimination and disrespect by the German Football Association (DFB) and German media.
Early life Mesut Özil was born on 15 October 1988, in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, as a son of Turkish immigrants. His grandfather moved as a Gastarbeiter from Zonguldak, Turkey to West Germany. He played, at youth level, for various clubs in Gelsenkirchen between 1995 and 2000, before a five-year stint with Rot-Weiss Essen.
Club career Schalke 04 In 2005, Özil moved to the youth system of Schalke 04. He was deployed a midfielder and wore 17 as his squad number, after starting as a playmaker and central attacking midfielder in the place of the suspended Lincoln in DFL-Ligapokal matches against Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich. Upon making the first team at Schalke, he was described in the German press as "the next big thing". However, soon after declining an offer from Schalke 04, claiming that a yearly salary of €1.5 million would not be enough, he eventually fell out with club management and moved on to Werder Bremen in January 2008. This led to Mirko Slomka, the then-Schalke manager, claiming that Özil would not play another match for Schalke.
Werder Bremen On 31 January 2008, Özil moved to Werder Bremen for a reported fee of , signing a contract with the German club until 30 June 2011. Other than Werder Bremen, Hannover 96 and VfB Stuttgart were reportedly interested as well in binding Özil to their respective clubs, however did not want to pay such a high transfer fee. After transferring to Werder Bremen, Özil got the jersey number 11. On 26 April 2008 (30th match day) Özil scored the go-ahead goal in the 33rd minute against Karlsruher SC, to put his team up 2–1, this was Özil's first Bundesliga goal. He played in twelve games throughout the second half of the season, six times playing in the starting formation, becoming second with Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga at the end of the 2007–08 season.
Although Bremen failed to get going in their 2008–09 Bundesliga season, eventually finishing a disappointing tenth, Özil made 3 goals and 15 assists in the league, as Werder Bremen finished tenth. He helped lead the North German club to the 2009 DFB-Pokal with the winning goal in a 1–0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in Berlin. He also played regularly in European competition as Werder Bremen reached the final of the last UEFA Cup, where they lost to Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine.
In the 2009–10 season, Özil took over the playmaker role formerly occupied by Brazilian midfielder Diego, and was named the best player of the first half of the 2009–10 Bundesliga season. On 1 May 2010, the 33rd match day, Özil played his 100th Bundesliga game, scoring the 1–0 lead in a 2–0 win against his former club Schalke. Özil went on and led Werder Bremen to become third in the league and again to the DFB-Pokal final, however this time it was lost against Bayern Munich by 0–4. In his second season, Bremen finished a respectable third, with Özil contributing 9 goals and 17 assists in 31 league fixture appearances. During the 2009–10 season, Özil was also declared as the "best player of the first half of the season".
Real Madrid 2010–11: Debut season, European assist leader
Following his performances at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Özil attracted interest from several leading European clubs. He was sought by teams like Barcelona, Arsenal and Real Madrid. English striker Wayne Rooney was one of the many admirers Özil had garnered with his performances in the World Cup, and had even asked Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson to sign the German playmaker. There were reports claiming that a deal was struck for a transfer to Barcelona, but Werder Bremen denied the reports and on 17 August 2010, the team announced that they had reached an agreement with Real Madrid for Özil's transfer. The transfer fee is believed to have been in the region of €15 million. Upon signing, Özil said, "When the offer came in to join Real Madrid, there is no decision to make. Let's be honest – you don't refuse this club. I was in no rush to leave Werder Bremen, but this is one club you say yes to. They are an institution, a club with a fantastic history, stadium and squad full of world-class players. The prospect of performing at the Bernabéu is so awesome you jump straight in."
Özil made his debut on 22 August in a friendly match against Hércules, which Real Madrid won 3–1. His jersey numbers were changed often before the season started. He was given the number 26 in the pre-season and 19 for his debut. But following the transfer of Rafael van der Vaart to Tottenham Hotspur, he was given the vacant 23.
Özil was brought in to back up teammate Kaká, but due to the latter's surgery, Özil obtained a starting role. He then made his La Liga debut for Real Madrid as a substitute for Ángel Di María in the 62nd minute against Mallorca, which Real Madrid drew 0–0.
He made his season debut in the Champions League on 15 September. He got his first assist with Real Madrid in the 74th minute against Ajax after he crossed for a Gonzalo Higuaín goal.
He walked off the pitch as a second-half substitute to standing ovations in his first two games as a starter at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. His first goal came in a league match against Deportivo de La Coruña on 3 October 2010, in a 6–1 victory. Özil's first Champions League goal with Real came in the 14th minute against Milan on 19 October 2010. On 22 December, he made his debut in the Copa del Rey, scoring once in an 8–0 victory over Levante.
He finished the season with 25 assists, the highest for any player in any major European competition that season. Özil's performances for Real Madrid during his first season were praised by media, fans and players.
2011–12: La Liga win Özil began wearing the number 10 shirt for Real Madrid in 2011–12, and continued to be used in an advanced playmaking role under manager José Mourinho. On 14 August 2011, Özil scored his first goal against Barcelona in El Clásico in the first leg of the 2011 Supercopa de España. On 17 August 2011, he was sent off in the last minute of the second leg of the 2011 Supercopa after an altercation with Barça forward David Villa. Özil expressed his desire to end his football days at the club in an interview with German magazine kicker, saying, "I'd like to end my career at Real Madrid. I know it will be difficult because I have many more years ahead of me and many younger and good players will also be out there, but I want to be part of that future. I know what I'm capable of, and I'm convinced, I'll stay at Real Madrid many years."
Özil was on the short-list of the FIFA Ballon d'Or award.
He finished atop the La Liga assists chart, with 17 assists. On 2 May 2012, he helped Real Madrid to clinch a record 32nd La Liga title as he assisted Real's first goal and scored the second goal against Athletic Bilbao, which Real Madrid won 3–0. Eleven days later, Özil scored two goals in the final game of the regular season against Mallorca, once again consolidating his excellent performance with the club. The win made Real the first club in the Spanish top flight to ever reach 100 points in a single season. His performances for Real Madrid and the Germany national team led to a nomination for the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award; he finished tenth and was the youngest player in the top ten.
2012–13: Third straight La Liga assist leader With arrival of Luka Modrić before the start of the season, some in the media claimed Özil was unhappy at Real Madrid, but he later rejected such talk and claimed he was happy at the club and looking forward to competing for his place. After the start of the season, he added the Supercopa de España title to his honours. In league play, he provided an important assist to Cristiano Ronaldo who equalised in a 2–2 draw against Barcelona at Camp Nou. On 6 November, Özil scored a crucial 89th-minute free-kick to rescue a draw for Real Madrid and secure a point against Borussia Dortmund. He continued his fine form in the league as he scored another brace against Real Valladolid to rescue Real Madrid in a 3–2 win. He then went on to finish the season with 29 assists, although Real Madrid did not win any silverware except for the Supercopa de España, Özil's performance was praised. At the end of the season, Özil had 26 assists, more than any other player in the leagues.
Arsenal On 2 September 2013, Özil agreed to join English side Arsenal. Both the fee paid for Özil as well as the contract duration were undisclosed, but they are believed to be around £42.5 million (€50 million) for a five-year deal. The transfer makes him the most expensive German football player of all time. Özil was assigned the number 11 shirt and the centre-attacking midfield role by the team. Contract leaks in January 2016, however, have revealed that the record fee was actually broken down to £37.4 million (€44 million) with a further £5.1 million (€6 million) split evenly over six years from July 2014, subject to Champions League qualification. A buy-back option also allows Real Madrid a 48-hour first option on Özil should Arsenal agree a sale for the playmaker to another Spanish club.