What’s the story?
Arsenal superstar Mesut Ozil has revealed that he had a heated bust-up with manager Jose Mourinho in the dressing room of Real Madrid during their time together at the club. The 28-year-old’s autobiography – ‘Die Magie des Spiels’ or ‘The magic of the Game’ is being serialized by German daily Bild.
According to the German, Mourinho called him a coward and a crybaby for not giving his all on the pitch. Infuriated by the allegation, Ozil threw his jersey at the Portuguese and asked him to go out and play for the team. Although, Ozil did admit that he later apologized to the team and the captain - Sergio Ramos. Cheekily enough, Ramos – who is Ozil’s best friend – wore Ozil’s jersey inside his own in the second half of the game, as a mark of support for the German.
The German World-Cup winner revealed an incident which happened at half-time during Real Madrid’s game against Deportivo La Coruna in 2012. He said: "Mourinho screamed at me 'Do you think two nice passes are enough? You think you are too good to enter a duel. You think you are so good that you can play at 50 per cent. Do you know what it looks like when you enter a duel? Let me show you.' He then tiptoed around the dressing room with his hands close to his body and pursed lips. I lost it and screamed at him to go out there on the pitch and play himself, taking off my jersey and throwing it at his feet. I told him to put it on and go out there.
"Mourinho was just laughing and sniped 'Are you giving up already? You are such a coward. What do you want to do? Get in the warm shower and wash your hair? Do you want to be alone? Or would you rather show your team-mates, the fans and me what you can do? You know what Mesut, why don't you start crying! You are such a crybaby, get in the shower. We do not need you.' I grabbed my towel and walked past him into the showers without saying a word to him. I later apologized for my behaviour to captain Sergio Ramos and the rest of the team."
In case you didn’t know…
Ozil signed for Los Blancos from Werder Bremen in 2010, the same year that Mourinho took charge at the Santiago Bernabeu. The two also left the club in the same year – 2013 – with Mourinho returning to his former club Chelsea while the German joined rivals Arsenal.
During their time together at the Spanish giants, the duo won La Liga, Copa del Rey and the Supercopa de Espana. The Portuguese has a special relationship with Ozil and has even hailed the Arsenal man as being the best No. 10 in the world.
Also Read: Mesut Ozil rejected Barcelona and signed for Real Madrid because of Pep Guardiola
The heart of the matter
Mesut Ozil has oft been criticized for carrying a callous attitude on the pitch and for going missing in the big games. He has also been on the receiving end of criticism from Arsenal fans for his perceived lack of input in difficult games.
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Sportskeeda’s Take
Arguments or bust-ups between a player and manager is a common theme in the world of football and often happens in the heat of the moment. Mourinho has been vocal with his praise for the Arsenal man and has even went as far as comparing him to Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane.
Ozil’s new book is bound to give us further anecdotes from the life of the World Cup winning German and the fans will wait for it with bated breath. Many interesting stories may come to light as Bild keeps on releasing excerpts from the book.
