Last Updated: September 18, 2018 11:45 am
In a recent interview with German outlet 11Freunde, Erkut Sögüt, the agent of Arsenal star Mesut Ozil, has defended his client’s decision to meet with Turkish president, Erdoğan.
Sögüt also hit out at Manuel Neuer, Toni Kroos and Thomas Muller over comments they made after Ozil decided to quit the German national team.
‘Neuer indirectly accused Mesut of not having worn the German jersey with pride’
Sögüt, speaking to the German magazine 11Freunde, stated:
“It is just a matter of respect and courtesy to agree to meet the president of Turkey when he requests it.
“The two of them have met regularly over the past eight years. It has never been a problem before for the German public.”
“Neuer indirectly accused Mesut of not having worn the German jersey with pride. This is unacceptable. Müller did not understand the whole discussion.
“And Kroos, as a seasoned national team player, should explain what he means by ‘nonsense’.
“There are only two explanations: they are either naive or scheming.”
Joachim Löw, Germany’s manager, had also stated that there was no racist behaviour in the team.
To which Sögüt said:
“Löw defends himself against an accusation that has never actually been made.
Mesut has not been racially abused from within the team but from the midst of German society. The German football association should have been more protective in this case.”
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal speaks with Mesut Ozil of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Ozil quits Germany
Mesut Ozil made a total of 92 appearances for the German national side.
In that time Ozil scored 23 and assisted an impressive 40.
Ozil was also a key member of the Germany squad who won the World Cup in 2014.
However, Ozil began to receive a lot of criticism from the German public earlier this year.
The reason being was because Ozil, who does have Turkish family, was pictured in a photo with Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The past couple of weeks have given me time to reflect, and time to think over the events of the last few months. Consequently, I want to share my thoughts and feelings about what has happened. pic.twitter.com/WpWrlHxx74
— Mesut Özil (@MesutOzil1088) 22 July 2018
This got Ozil a lot of abuse from some Germans.
Couple this with a poor 2018 World Cup from the entire Germany squad and Ozil was singled out as a scapegoat.
This eventually lead to Ozil retiring from International football earlier this summer.
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