A couple of days ago, Spanish newspaper Marca published an article saying Mesut Ozil wants to return to Real Madrid and they added that, in recent days, it’s been communicated to the Spanish club.
Sergio Ramos was said to be a backer of the idea, being a big friend of the Arsenal player, and an admirer of his talents.
That could all be dismissed as typical Marca guff. What they publish on Thursday cannot, and maybe there’s more than a coincidence of timing between the two.
Marca have a front page showing a grinning Ozil, with the words:
“Back to Madrid?”
“You never know.”
Ozil is splashed over the newspaper’s first four pages with an exclusive interview, the whole point of which is to let it be known there’s some chance of a return to Real Madrid.
The Arsenal player had serious run-ins with the Madrid media as he made the move to Arsene Wenger’s side, so he knows exactly what he’s doing here and how his words will be taken.
This is absolutely not Ozil agreeing to an innocent interview and then Marca turning it into something it isn’t.
So, to the questions. Marca kick off by establishing that it is true, Ramos and Ozil remain big buddies.
Not wasting any time, to a question about how he’s changed personally since leaving Real Madrid, Ozil answers: “I think I haven’t changed, really. I try to be the same guy as always. I am very happy to be here at Arsenal and try to be the same person as when I started playing. All are stages. Of course, I do not forget my time in Madrid. Three years have passed and I have great memories from there.”
Ozil had got on to Madrid before even Marca had expected, so they then asked if he thought his time at the Spanish club had been positive: “Of course yes. As you know, Madrid is a great club, I played with some great players, I have friends there still… And the Real Madrid fans are very loyal and affectionate with me, still they encourage me. Many send me messages and ask me to come back, so I have only good memories from there.”
Marca get to it: ‘A return of Mesut Ozil to Real Madrid is possible?’
“I am very happy playing in such a big club like Arsenal, which has amazing fans and they also encourage me a lot. I am playing very well in London, but in football you never know… We’ll see what happens in the future.”
The Arsenal player then talks about his ‘idol’ Zinedine Zidane, how he impressed by winning the Champions League, and how he still follows the club’s results.
Marca, feeling confident given Ozil’s earlier answers, jumped straight back in:
‘Tell the truth, you miss Madrid?’: “I miss the times [laughs]. That sun is… there is always sun. I tell you, I have great memories from there, with the club, the city, people… Of course, sometimes you stop and think and well, you can miss it… Now I am happy at Arsenal, but you never know what can happen in the future. We will see.”
‘Do you regret having left Madrid? It was a mistake?’: “I do not make mistakes. I’m happy to have taken this adventure in England, having grown as a player and as a person. I am also very happy to play in such a big club like Arsenal.”
Marca round it off with run of the mill questions. At the end the newspaper make a point of saying Ozil said “see you soon’, insinuating that’s another hint he fancies a return to Real Madrid.
In the midst of renewal talks with Arsenal, and with a contract ending in 2018, this interview won’t give Wenger a warm and cuddly feeling. Zidane and Madrid may not be interested in an Ozil return, unless the 28 year old ran his contract down and left Arsenal for free the summer after next, but the player himself seems keen.
A footballer doesn’t do this interview, with Marca, give the comments Ozil has, unless they’re happy for the Spanish newspaper to turn it into a ‘wink, wink, nudge, nudge, ‘insert player here’ fancies a Real Madrid move’.
