3 reasons why Ozil was right to quit international football

#1 Blatant racism due to his Turkish heritage

Ozil has endured constant racism during his international career

Mesut Ozil is a third generation Turkish-German but has shown absolute loyalty and dedication to Germany for the duration of his ten-year career with Die Mannschaft as his very impressive statistics show. So for reference to always be made to his dual-ancestry every time his criticism arises is disheartening.

Racism is an abomination that has no place on earth, let alone in the footballing world where global admiration of football has led to diverse cultures and history being assimilated in love of the beautiful game. Unfortunately, there is still a wide issue of racism in football which the governing bodies of the game are trying to address.

Footballers are constant targets of racism, as opposition fans disgustingly taunt them on virtue of the color of their skin or ancestral heritage and while racism by opposition fans is bad enough, to endure it from the media, supporters and politicians of a nation which you have vigorously defended with blood, sweat and injuries for almost a decade is preposterous.

Ozil has had to persist with his ancestry being called into question at all opportunities during his German career and this is rather uncalled for as he has been nothing but professional and dedicated throughout his career.

No player is perfect and can be on top form forever, so all footballers throughout history have endured a period during which they suffered a slump in form and Mesut Ozil is no exception, but to attribute his drop in performance to a lack of commitment due to his ancestry is nothing short of outright racism and Ozil's anger is justified.

As pointed out by Ozil in his statement, the way he has been treated by the German press, DFB and politicians has been racially motivated and he singled out DFB President Reinhard Grindel, with his body language and statements suggesting that Ozil is German when they win, but an immigrant when they lose.

Ozil also pointed out other disgusting acts of racism in his statement by German politicians, highlighting comments by Bernd Holzhauer and Werner Steer which referenced him in unprintable terms.

Ozil's decision was a hard one to come to, as revealed in his statement, but acts of racism and feeling unloved by the German media and politicians made him arrive at the 'difficult decision' and he said that: '' I now feel unwanted and think that what I have achieved since my international debut in 2009 has been forgotten."

Racism is a disgraceful stigma in the world, and Ozil's decision sends a strong message that it is wrong to discriminate anyone on account of the colour of his skin, hence announcing his retirement is a bold statement and the right one from Mesut Ozil.