Germany's Ozil fit for their World Cup opener v Mexico - Loew

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Germany midfielder Mesut Ozil has fully recovered from a minor knee injury in their penultimate warm-up match and is fit to play in their World Cup opener against Mexico on Sunday, coach Joachim Loew said on Saturday.

Germany's Ozil fit for their World Cup opener v Mexico - Loew

(Reuters)





Ozil picked up a knock in the 2-1 loss to Austria on June 2 and had to miss their last friendly against Saudi Arabia six days later.

The 2014 World Cup winner, who has played in every single match Germany have contested in their last two World Cups, had also suffered a back injury in May that had kept him out for weeks, putting his fitness for the tournament in Russia in doubt.

"All players are fit. Mesut Ozil this week completed two additional training sessions and can play," Loew said. "But I will discuss the final line-up with the team this evening. There are two, three ideas in my head for the line-up."

Apart from his injuries, Ozil also had to deal with a massive fallout from photos taken with him and Germany team mate Ilkay Gundogan with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan last month.

The two players of Turkish descent were jeered by German fans in their final warm-up games as the affair overshadowed their run-up to the tournament, with many supporters calling for the pair to be thrown out of the team.

German lawmakers across the political spectrum and the country's football federation argued that Erdogan does not sufficiently respect German values.

"A lot has been written about Mesut (and his mood)," team mate Julian Draxler, who could play alongside him in midfield against Mexico, said on Saturday.

"But that is not all true. He is in good spirits, makes jokes. The mood is good and he cannot wait for the tournament to start."

Questions regarding Ozil's mood are nothing new with the player often criticised for his body language during matches.

"This discussion has been going on for a few years. He has skills not many possess and he is our most creative player," Draxler said. "He will be there when needed and will play a good tournament."





(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Christian Radnedge)


Share
2 min read

Published

Source: Reuters


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world