Mesut Ozil has 'contract terminated and quits football' after disastrous spell in Turkey
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Mesut Ozil has reportedly quit football after a disastrous spell playing in Turkey.
The World Cup winner has managed just seven appearances in all competitions playing for Istanbul Basaksehir, who he joined in the summer.
Ozil signed a one-year contract with the option for a second but Yakup Cinar from Fanatik is reporting that his deal has been terminated prematurely.
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The 34-year-old is not expected to look for a new club, however, after telling his teammates he has decided to call time on his career this morning.
ÖZEL | Mesut Özil'in sözleşmesi fesh ediliyor! Futbolu bırakma kararı aldı.
— Yakup Çınar (@yakupcinar) February 3, 2023
In his pomp, Ozil was one of the best playmakers in world football and shone for both Real Madrid and Arsenal. But his career stunted massively from 2020 onwards and it now appears to be having a sad end.
Ozil played the first 45 minutes of his side's 1-0 defeat to Kayserispor on Thursday night in what appears to be his final ever appearance on the pitch.
Having won La Liga and the Copa del Rey with Real, Ozil moved to England in 2013, joining Arsenal in a £42.5 million switch on deadline day.
He managed 54 goals and 33 assists in 184 Premier League appearances and won three FA Cups at the Emirates Stadium.
But when Mikel Arteta arrived, Ozil was completely frozen out and did not feature from March 2020 onwards.
Ozil would then join boyhood club Fenerbahce on a free transfer in January 2021 but that stint turned out to be a nightmare.
He and teammate Ozan Tufan, were axed from the Fenerbahce first-team squad after a verbal altercation with the club's interim manager Ismail Kartal and claims he was not "physically competent".
Following a suspension, his contract was then ripped up by mutual consent in July 2022 after just 37 appearances for Fener.
Ozil might already have his post-football career in the pipeline as his agent Dr Erkut Sogut, has revealed his love for competitive gaming and streaming.
"I think he will not play football in any other club any more. I can't see that – it will be Fenerbahce and that’s it," Sogut told The Telegraph previously.
“He will go more into esports, play himself and maybe become an esports athlete. He’s really good, to be honest, at Fortnite and I think one day I wouldn’t be surprised if he is competing. He owns a team – M10 Esports – and he has players. He has a gaming house in Germany. He has football, like Fifa, and Fortnite.”
Featured Image Credit: Alamy
Topics: Mesut Ozil, Arsenal, Real Madrid, Fenerbahce, Germany
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