Mesut Ozil has dismissed rumours that he is considering bringing an end to his professional career.
The 33-year-old has been frozen out at Fenerbahce, 18 months on from joining the club after he found himself in a similar situation at Arsenal.
New Fenerbahce manager Jorge Jesus has made it clear that the playmaker is not in his plans at the club, speaking about the “end of the Ozil era” and insisting that the player has “had his time”. Ozil was facing an uncertain future even more Jesus’ arrival, after he was dropped from the first-team squad for disciplinary reasons earlier in the year.
His agent Dr Erkut Sogut gave an interview with The Telegraph last week and suggested that Ozil could move into the world of eSports in the near future, sparking talk of a potential retirement from football.
However, Ozil has taken to Twitter to insist he still remains fully committed to Fenerbahce and has no intention of stepping away from either the club or the sport.
“I wanted to make this statement in order to prevent the discrediting of myself in the public and to inform our community correctly,” Ozil tweeted.
“First of all, I make my preparations individually with a special program, and I patiently wait for my time to come in order to meet my childhood love and contribute.
“I did not come to Fenerbahce and my homeland Turkey for a holiday. Every time I sweat our glorious jersey, I have no other purpose than to contribute. I have many goals that I would like to live in Fenerbahce, my childhood love. I will not quit football until I do these things.
“Both me and my club are going through a process inherent in football. It is my greatest desire to serve my beloved Fenerbahce by getting through this process in the best way possible.
“My request to our fans is that they do not give credence to the fake news in the media.”
