Ozil Dropped From Germany Squad
Reuters / Kai Pfaffenbach
Mesut Ozil has not been selected in Joachim Löw’s Germany side for the country’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers.
Ozil has been in stunning form for Arsenal of late, and has been a regular in the starting XI.
However, with fears of a burn-out, and the upcoming crunch clashes against Manchester United in the Premier League and Paris Saint Germain in the Champions League in mind, Gunners boss Arsene Wenger suggested it would be better if the attacking midfielder was excused from Germany’s National team ahead of the country’s World Cup qualifier against San Marino followed by a friendly against Italy.
“I think it would be an intelligent decision and I would welcome it,” Wenger said at his press conference on Thursday. “We have to wait until he (Joachim Low) gives the selection out to see if Mesut gets a rest or not.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVpHk8Y1J3Q
Ozil was dubbed the ‘assist king’ for his incredible tally of 19 assists in the Premier League last season. However, instead of creating goals as he normally does, the 28-year-old has found the back of the net himself on a regular basis this season. He has already notched up 7 goals in 14 appearances for the Gunners in all competitions.
Despite his brilliant form, Low seems to have obliged to the wishes of Wenger, and has decided to leave Ozil out of the squad for the upcoming games.
With Ozil excluded, the full Germany squad is as follows:
Goalkeepers: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Bernd Leno (Bayer Leverkusen), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona).
Defenders: Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich), Yannick Gerhardt (Wolfsburg), Jonas Hector (Cologne), Benjamin Henrichs (Bayer Leverkusen), Benedikt Howedes (Schalke), Mats Hummels, Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal), Sebastian Rudy (Hoffenheim), Jonathan Tah (Bayer Leverkusen).
Midfielders/Forwards: Julian Brandt (Bayer Leverkusen), Serge Gnabry (Werder Bremen), Mario Gomez (Wolfsburg), Leon Goretzka (Schalke), Mario Gotze (Borussia Dortmund), Ilkay Gundogan (Manchester City), Sami Khedira (Juventus), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Max Meyer (Schalke), Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich), Kevin Volland (Bayer Leverkusen), Julian Weigl (Borussia Dortmund).
Reuters / Lee Smith
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