Often Injured, Mezut Ozil Decides To Hang Up His Shoes

Mesut Ozil ended his career in football at the age of 34. (Between/AFP/Kirill Kudryavtsev)

JAKARTA - Former Arsenal midfielder Real Madrid and Germany national team Mesut Ozil announced that he was retiring as a professional footballer at the age of 34.

Reporting from the upload of Mesut Ozil's Twitter account, @M10, Wednesday, the Turkish-blooded player wrote that he made this retirement decision after going through careful consideration.

"I have had the advantage of being a professional footballer for almost 17 years and I feel really grateful for this opportunity," Ozil wrote.

"But in the last few weeks and months, having also had some injuries, it became more and clearer that it was time to leave the big stage of football."

Ozil added that this was an extraordinary journey filled with unforgettable moments and emotions. He also thanked the club he had defended.

Thank you ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Aqr4pB5SI2

— Mesut Özil (@M10) March 22, 2023

"I want to thank my club Schalke 04, Werder Bremen, Real Madrid, Arsenal FC, Fenerbahce, Basaksehir and the coaches who have supported me, plus friends," Ozil wrote.

"Special thanks should be given to my family members and close friends. They are part of the first day and have given me a lot of love and support, through beautiful and difficult times," he added.

The winner of the 2018 World Cup title also expressed his gratitude to the supporters who have supported him not to care about the circumstances and the club he defended.

"Now I look forward to everything in front of me with my beautiful wife, Amine, and two beautiful daughters of mine, Eda and Ela, but you can't be sure what you'll be with of me from time to time on my social media channel," Ozil concluded.

The player who was born on October 15, 1988, was recorded to have started his career with Schalke's junior team in 1998 and first appeared at professional level with Schalke 04 in July 2006.

He then defended Werder Bremen, Real Madrid, Arsenal, Fenerbahce, and Istanbul Baskehir. Ozil has won one Spanish League title, four FA Cups, one Copa del Rey, one Spanish Super Cup, two Community Shield Cups and the German Cup.

At the level of professional clubs, Ozil made 642 appearances and scored 114 goals and 222 assists in various competitions.

Together with the German national team, Ozil made his debut on February 11, 2009 and was able to win the 2018 World Cup title and made 92 appearances with 23 goals.