LONDON: Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has insisted club-record signing Mesut Ozil didn’t leave Spanish giants Real Madrid because he wanted an easier life with the north London club.
German playmaker Ozil left Spain for England in a £43 million move on transfer deadline day, with Ozil saying he no longer felt as involved in the plans of Real manager Carlo Ancelotti following Gareth Bale’s world record switch to the Bernabeu from Arsenal’s arch-rivals Tottenham.
However, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez subsequently said Ozil asked to leave because “he couldn’t handle the pressure at Madrid”.
But Wenger disagreed with Perez’s analysis, saying Ozil, who has impressed since joining the Gunners and is set to play his first home match at the Emirates Stadium against Stoke on Sunday, was well capable of handling high pressure matches.
“No, I have not seen that at all,” Wenger said Friday when asked if Ozil looked like a player wanting a less stressful time than the one he’d endured in Madrid.
“He is 24, he has over 50 caps for Germany and when you play for Germany, you are under a lot of pressure. He won the championship with Real Madrid, and that is a club where there is a lot of pressure, but I could not detect that.
“Ozil has integrated well, and been well accepted,”Wenger said.
“I think he is not at the top physically yet, overall we are very pleased to have him with us, but he will demand a bit of time to adjust to the vigorous body challenges he will face here in the Premier league.
“Once he has done that, he will be even stronger,” he said. (Agencies)