Oezil officially left the field after 17 years with football. The once outstanding talent of German and world football is a paradoxical player who succeeds in the national team shirt but fails at the club level. He has said goodbye, the fans are still wondering: is Ozil a genius or an outdated person in the flow of modern football.

From U21 to World Cup

When the German U21 team won the European championship in 2009, Ozil was one of the most prominent players. In the same year, the star who was once considered a future playmaker continued to impress for Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga. But the 2010 World Cup was truly the playground that brought Ozil’s name to light on the world football map, according to The Athletic.

At the tournament in South Africa, Germany scored 4 goals against Australia in the group stage, before going on to defeat two powerful opponents, England and Argentina. In these matches, Ozil is always the catalyst, contributing to creating exemplary counter-attack situations. With Ozil in the squad, the German team performed a completely different style of play compared to Euro 2008. “Nationalelf” “transformed” for the first time in many years and Ozil was at the center of this interesting change. 

Watching Ozil play live is a mesmerizing experience. Not many players are better than the star born in 1988 in his ability to exploit the space between the lines. Ozil always knows how to change positions on the field when facing opposing players. If he is closely followed by a centre-back, he will drop deep. When falling into the “sight” of the defensive midfielder, Oezil proactively pushed forward. Thanks to this flexibility, he causes opponents to leave their positions, thereby creating beneficial situations for his teammates.

Number 10 is multi-purpose

Ozil is not a number 10 that is confined to the central area or easily locked down by opposing defensive midfielders. When necessary, he will play the role of a winger instead of a central midfielder. Ozil’s tectonic situations are always artistic.

Ozil reached his peak during his years with Real Madrid. During 3 years under the direction of coach Mourinho, he freely flourished on the left wing with decisive passes aimed at Ronaldo’s position and also with moves to create space for his teammates.

The Portuguese strategist did not always have faith in Ozil. But the German international is still a Mourinho-style playmaker in terms of speed.

Opposition at club and national level

The decision to move to the Premier League in 2013 meant that Ozil missed the opportunity to win the Champions League four times with Real Madrid in the following five seasons. His beautiful experiences in his early days with Arsenal also quickly passed. 

With a record transfer value at that time (more than 40 million pounds), Ozil spent the first half of the 2015-2016 season full of excitement but proved ineffective in the rest. His poor performance under coach Emery, contract controversies… made his ending at the Emirates look like a boring drama. 

On the international stage, Ozil still shines, especially with his important contributions in the journey with Germany to the 2014 World Cup. Fans will still remember the performances of the midfielder who won the title five times. “Best German Player of the Year” title at major tournaments in the period 2010-2016. 

Ozil may be outstanding in the national team shirt but is no longer himself when he returns to the club – which owns a very different style of football. National level football is slower, there are less complicated movements and passing situations, and individuals can also play more freely. These things are suitable for Ozil, but only at the team level. Compared to the club level, national football is a decade behind in terms of tactics.

Ozil is clearly not successful at club level. He often seems lazy when he is “hungry” for the ball. In some matches, Ozil did not stop the opposing midfielder or fullback when necessary. The player nicknamed “Nemo” is even weak in situations when opponents are fiercely approaching him. 

Arteta, who later became Ozil’s coach, once created conditions for “Nemo” but quickly realized that flashes of brilliance still could not compensate for the midfielder’s shortcomings. When he decided to remove his former teammate from his plans, no top coach expressed interest in recruiting Ozil.

Genius or anachronism?

When he no longer had a place to act, Oezil decided to return to Türkiye to play football. But this plan cannot help him write a bright ending. Oezil’s reputation is not even enough for fans to name the last club he played for before retiring.

In a way, Oezil contains many contradictions. From the role model of a modern player, he suddenly became outdated. “Nemo” has the ability to counterattack at speed but may not be able to keep up with the pace of the match. 

Although he is hailed as the “King of Assists”, Ozil is still not highly appreciated based on statistics alone. A rare talent of his generation, Ozil was left behind by his fast-paced style of play, which partly originated in German football.

But all the paradoxes make Ozil special. He is like an outsider, and perhaps not recognized in his own time even when he was seen as the leader of football in the 2010s.