In a recent interview with The Times, Mesut Ozil has claimed that Zinedine Zidane is his all-time football idol, a statement that can fuel speculation of a transfer back to Real Madrid. When asked about Andres Iniesta, he said “Iniesta is a big player. I like how he is playing, but my real idol was Zinedine Zidane. He was not selfish. He scored, but he also made assists. He was a leader.”
Ozil is reportedly unsettled at Arsenal and reports in Spain suggest that he regrets his move to the club. He has refused to explicitly rule out a return to Real Madrid in an interview with Marca, and rumours are circulating about a shock return to the club he left for £42.5 million in 2013. His contract expires at the end of next season and he is asking for wages of £250,000 per week, an amount Wenger is allegedly refusing to pay, given his reputation for low spending and maintaining a stable wage structure.
Real Madrid bought Ozil from Werder Bremen in 2010, after his glistening performances at the World Cup, which established him as one of the top young prospects in football. He made 147 appearances for the team, scoring 25 goals and completing a staggering 60 assists.
"I feel great playing in London, but in the world of football, you never know. We'll see what happens in the future," Ozil told Marca. "Real Madrid is an enormous club. I played with fantastic players and still have friends there... and Real Madrid supporters have always been loyal and affectionate with me. They still cheer for me. A lot of them send me messages and ask for me to return, so I'm left with very good memories of my time there.”
This will not come as good news to Arsenal fans as Mesut Ozil has been in fine form this season, with 7 goals and 4 assists in 17 games in all competitions. If Arsenal were to sell their star player, they would ask for an enormous amount of money, keeping in mind his performances and the current inflated prices in the transfer market. However, Real Madrid are no strangers to splurging on transfer targets they have set their eyes on, so this summer will be an interesting one for Arsenal and Real Madrid fans.
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