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Arsenal: Mesut Ozil ‘done’ with the German national team

By Esteban Bailey

KAZAN, RUSSIA - JUNE 27: Mesut Ozil of Germany during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia group F match between Korea Republic and Germany at Kazan Arena on June 27, 2018 in Kazan, Russia. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
KAZAN, RUSSIA - JUNE 27: Mesut Ozil of Germany during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia group F match between Korea Republic and Germany at Kazan Arena on June 27, 2018 in Kazan, Russia. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images) /
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After a lengthy and fiery statement, Mesut Ozil is done with the German National team.

The 2014 World Cup winner cited a feeling of “racism and disrespect’ from the German FA, German media, and German fans at large. Ozil was one of the key cogs in Germany’s long awaited World Cup triumph in Brazil. He amassed over 92 caps and won Germany Player of the Year five times since 2011.

This whole situation has erupted since Ozil took a photo with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and gave a signed jersey to him during a London event in May. He was questioned by German politicians to know if he was loyal to “German democratic values”.

There were calls at the time to have Ozil removed from the Germany World Cup squad going to Russia. Once the team crashed out of the group stage, the Arsenal midfielder was the target of hate mail and threats. Many German fans and pundits specifically criticized Ozil’s poor performance as the main reason for Germany’s capitulation.

Ozil has always had a strained relationship with the press at large as his displays for Arsenal are not always convincing, but the level of hate that he received after the photo and World Cup went further.

Racism was as clear as daylight

There were clear elements of racism, targeting his Turkish heritage. The German FA did not give Ozil much backing when he received racial abuse on social media. To make matters worse, Bayern Munich’s president, Uli Hoeneß, claimed Mesut Ozil had been playing like “sh*t for years” and diminished the role that Ozil played on the national team in 2014.

The midfielder was forced to confront deep-rooted issues in German society without any support from the hierarchy in place to protect him. Hoeneß’s disrespectful takedown of such a talented and important footballer, reflects a growing tension within European football.

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Ozil stated “I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose,”. That sentiment has been echoed by the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Karim Benzema.

The French national team that won the 2018 World Cup was primarily filled with the children of foreign born immigrants, specifically from Africa. So much so, that many Africans claimed the victory was more of an African World Cup victory than a French one.

Trevor Noah, of the Daily Show, recently got into an argument with the French ambassador of the United States over his comments about how the victory was a victory for Africans everywhere. There has been a lot of political struggle in Europe over immigration and national identity. National football teams are an extension of a country’s national identity and their values.

The vitriol being laid on Mesut Ozil highlights – a continuing struggle that many immigrants or individuals with foreign ancestry and heritage face in Europe.

Raphael Honigstein, one of Germany’s great football writers, put it perfectly. “…the fact the most technically gifted player of his generation feels he can no longer represent Germany while he feels subjected to racism, makes it a very painful day for German football on the whole”.

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